BAJAUR: A jirga held here the other day demanded “result-oriented” measures by the government for the restoration of peace here complaining about the poor law and order situation for several months.

The tribal council met on the lawns of the district administration’s Jirga Hall in Civil Colony, Khar, where elders of key tribes Tharkani and Utmankhel and political and religious leaders showed up.

Key speakers in the meeting called Peace Jirga included PPP leader and former MNA Syed Akhunzada Chatan, PML-N district president Malik Gul Kareem Khan, ANP district president Gul Afzal Khan and general secretary Nisar Baz Khan, and elders Malik Shaheen Khan, Malik Abdul Nasar Khan, Malik Shaheen Khan, Malik Yousaf Khan, Malik Asghar Khan, Syed Sadiq Akbar.

They voiced concerns about the “poor” law and order situation in tribal districts, especially Bajaur.

The speakers said the wave of insurgency that had swept across the district since last year was a matter of serious concern for all residents as not only had it claimed several lives but it had disturbed peace in the area.

They said joint efforts by the residents and law-enforcement institutions led to the restoration of peace in the region, so they would go all-out to protect it.

The speakers said it was the government’s responsibility to maintain peace in the district.

They said scores of residents, mostly elders, rendered their lives for the restoration of peace.

The speakers said the return of violence to the region showed the government’s failure to protect public life.

Some participants complained that several residents were killed in the district recently but the police had failed to even trace the killers.

They said before the introduction of the police system in the region, the local bazaars and commercial centres were considered to be the “most peaceful areas” but currently, most killings were reported in marketplaces.

Later, PML-N leader Malik Gul Kareem Khan and spokesman for the Ittehad-i-Malkanan Bajaur Malik Shaheen Khan told reporters that the Peace Jirga demanded effective steps by authorities for the improvement of peace in the district.

They said a team comprising local elders and senior politicians would take up the law and order issue with high-ups in Peshawar “very soon.”

They said more such jirgas would take place in future.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2023