KHHBER: The committee for former Khasadar and Levies personnel in erstwhile Fata has demanded equal rights along with complete implementation of all the agreed 22 points regarding their service structure on the pattern of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police.

Addressing a press conference at Jamrud Press Club on Thursday, committee members Said Jalal, Jahangir Khan, Mazhar Afridi, Hikmat Afridi and Ayaz Khan said that they held a number of meetings with different IGPs since the extension of Police Act to merged districts but they were still awaiting acceptance of their genuine demands.

They said that they were promised equal perks and privileges like their colleagues in other districts of the province soon after the extension of Police Act at the time of merger but they were not provided with those legal and basic facilities, which disheartened the newly-converted tribal police force.

They criticised the role of DPOs in merged districts. They said that initially DPOs were appointed in merged districts solely to devise a service structure for the newly-converted police and also keep their record books.

Demand posting of tribal police personnel in home districts

“Now they have adopted coercive attitude with local police by suspending and expelling local police at their sweet well,” they alleged.

The committee members said that they always believed in a negotiated settlement of all their grievances while refraining from taking law into their hands.

“The authoritarian attitude of DPOs has compelled us to agitate for our rights in the police uniform as they have failed to fulfil their legal responsibility of devising a service structure for us,” they added.

They said that they submitted a 13-point demand list to IGP with the hope that he would treat their demands with a sympathetic heart as tribal police were also a patriotic and disciplined force and deserve equal treatment.

They said that tribal and home department had already declared them a regular part of KP police. They said that it was the responsibility of police department to offer them all perks and privileges alongside a comprehensive service structure to end their sense of deprivation.

The committee members took exception to appointments of outsider SPs in merged districts. They said that all the tribal police personnel posted in other areas should be called back to their home districts.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2024