PESHAWAR, Feb 8: Reacting to an alleged agreement between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and a UK-based company, Merlin Wood, to give the company 0.2 million acres of a forest on a 40-year lease, the leaders of Sarhad Awami Forestry Ittehad (Safi) warned on Wednesday that if the agreement was not cancelled immediately they would move a court against it. Speaking at a press conference at Peshawar Press Club, Safi leader Jamshed Khan said that the agreement had been kept secret and owners of the forest had not been taken into confidence in this regard.

Flanked by other leaders, including Amir Mohammad, Riaz Mohammad, Sultan Yousuf and Hazrat Said, Mr Jamshed said that the decision would be against the interests of forest owners.

He suggested that a forestry commission should be formed and forestry roundtable be revived so that all such issues could be solved through discussion. The Safi leader said that the provincial government had only seven per cent share in the forests and ownership of 35 per cent forests was disputed. He said that the local people owned the remaining forests and the government had no right to give them to someone under agreements.

Mr Jamshed claimed that the company would give 12 million pounds sterling to the provincial government and get 20 per cent share from the business of carbon credit.

He asked the government to make the agreement public and discuss it with the forest owners, otherwise they would start protest demonstrations and move the court against the agreement.