SWABI: MNA-elect Shahram Khan Tarakai received a warm welcome when he reached the Swabi Interchange of the Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway on Wednesday after remaining in the hiding for over nine months. People then took him to the Tarakai House here in a procession.

Mr Shahram, the health minister in the last PTI government in the province, had contested the NA-20 seat as an independent candidate backed by PTI.

He went into hiding after the May 9, 2023 incidents.

On Tuesday, the Peshawar High Court had granted him protective bail till Feb 19 in a case registered against him in Swabi.

Mr Shahram did not campaign physically, but still he defeated his uncle, Usman Khan Tarakai, who was Pakistan Peoples Party candidate, and Waris Khan of Awami National Party with a big margin of over 74,000 votes on the NA seat.

His brother, Faisal Khan Tarrskai, and cousin, Murtaza Khan Tarakai also won provincial constituencies.

Addressing the party workers, Mr Shahram said false cases were registered against the party leaders, and his house was raided several times to force him to shun allegiance to party founder Imran Khan. “However, the PTI prevailed in the end.”

He said all tactics adopted to put PTI out of electoral race failed. “People trusted us and voted for us, and we won’t hurt their trust,” he said.

Shahram asserted that people were true source of power. “The way people voted for PTI-backed candidates in the elections proved that they were the final stamp on anybody’s fate.”

GIRL DIES ON ROAD: A teenage girl was killed and two others were critically injured when a tractor-trolley and a rickshaw collided on Swabi-Jehangira Road on Wednesday, Rescue 1122 officials said.

They said the accident left three people seriously injured, who were shifted to Bacha Khan Teaching Hospital, Shahmansoor, where Jalwa Khan, 14, succumbed to her injuries. She belonged to Maini village.

The injured were identified as Mohammed Ibrahim, 17, and Sadiq Khan, 20. The tractor-trolley driver fled the spot.

The Swabi city police registered an FIR against him.

Meanwhile, in a successful operation the Chota Lahor police busted an inter-provincial robbers’ gang on Wednesday.

DSP Jawad Khan said the arrested men belonged to an inter-provincial gang, who used to snatch cash, mobile phones and other belongings from people at gunpoint.

He identified the outlaws as Waqar Ahmed of Mardan and Shahid Khan of Peshawar. He said the police recovered four mobile phones, Rs65,000 cash, a car and a pistol.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2024