KOHAT, Dec 4: A tribal leader has accused the assistant political agent of violating human rights and misusing authority. Haji Fazalur Rehman was addressing a press conference in Darra Adamkhel in the Frontier Region Kohat on Saturday.

Accusing the assistant political agent of collecting fines without issuing receipts, he said that the father of the APA Zahir Shah was district naib nazim of Takhtbai who settled all tribal disputes in his native town. After taking bribes from criminals, he alleged, they were set free from Kohat prison and said under the FCR, nobody could challenge the APA's decisions.

He said that the official had illegally detained two boys - nine-year-old Saeed and 12-year-old Saleem - whose father was wanted in a kidnapping case.

When the APA was approached by some former MNAs and elders of the area for their release and assured him that the main accused would surrender soon, he refused to consider the request. He termed it inhuman and against the tribal norms to punish children for the crimes committed by their father.

He disclosed that some people had stolen arms manufactured by him for the Wills Project in the US and the Lahore Corps Commander, Lt-Gen Zarar Azeem, former vice-chief of army staff Gen Yousaf and lawyer Abdul Latif Afridi but the APA was not taking any action against the accused party.

He said the APA was even ignoring instructions of military authorities and said that he was delaying the recovery of weapons from the shop of the accused.

He said that the APA since taking his office had collected more than Rs10 million in fines from different criminals only a few of them had receipts against their payments.

APA Zahir Shah informed on telephone that the father of the two children detained by the administration had been released a few months ago after remaining in jail for two years.