4
ISLAMABAD: After leaving their hearth and home due to law and order situation, fear and insecurity still haunts the people of Kurram Agency who have taken refuge in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad in search of a peaceful life.
Majority of the people of Kurram Agency have left their native towns to avoid being killed or kidnapped for ransom and also shifted their businesses to other parts of the country.
But those now staying in the capital city are facing life threats from elements they think have roots in the militancy-hit Kurram Agency.
On Monday, lawmakers were informed during an in-camera briefing that so far 1,100 people have been killed in Parachinar and hundreds of houses burnt in the sectarian clashes that erupted in 2009.
Mohammad Akbar, a resident of Parachinar, was intercepted by masked men on his way to Daman-i-Koh who, according to him, wanted to kidnap him on Tuesday.
“They stopped my car and aimed their gun at me asking me to shift in their vehicle. Judging from their Pashto accent, I guessed that they were from Parachinar. Luckily, a school bus appeared on the scene,” said the 36-year-old who runs his own business.
“In the meanwhile, they hit me with the pistol and ran towards their car and sped away. I am sure they wanted to kidnap me for ransom,” he added.
Malik Asif, the investigation officer at Kohsar police station, when contacted, said the complainant had been hit with a pistol on the face, adding a report had been registered against unknown people. He confirmed that it was a bid to kidnap the man.
Like Mr Akbar, several other residents of Parachinar, particularly members of the Turi tribe, have been kidnapped from Rawalpindi-Islamabad. Many of them were taken away from their houses in Rawalpindi.
Naveed Hussain, 36, was kidnapped from Lala Zar in the garrison city in August 2010 and was released three months after he paid a ransom of Rs1.5 million to his captors.
“They (kidnappers) took me to a remote area and asked me to pay the ransom or face death. They earlier demanded Rs3 million,” he recalled.
Similarly, Khayal Hussain, 38, a resident of Burki village in the Kurram Agency, was abducted when he left the Benazir Bhutto International Airport after returning from Dubai. He has also lost two brothers to sectarian violence in the tribal area.
“We feel extremely insecure even in the twin cities and insecurity always haunts the residents of Parachinar in and outside Kurram Agency,” said Ali Hussain, an Islamabad-based journalist who also belongs to the tribal area.
Qaiser Ali, of Agra in Parachinar, was kidnapped from Tarnol and after seven months his bullet-riddled body was recovered near Kohat.
“No place in the country is safe for us and only God can protect us,” Mujahid Ali, the brother of late Qaiser, who currently lives in Satellite Town, told this reporter.
