TIMERGARA, April 3: A 12-year-old swara victim on Wednesday appealed to the chief justice of Pakistan and the caretaker provincial chief minister to provide her and her brother with justice and adequate safety, saying a local jirga is pressuring her to marry a 22-year-old man against her will.

Rubina, a resident of Doog Dara in Upper Dir district, told reporters at the Timergara Press Club along with his brother, Bakht Munir, 18, that a jirga of 25 villages in Doog Darra had pressurised her father and elder brother to marry her off to a man she did not like.

She said the jirga had set April 4 as the wedding day.

“I ran away with my brother last night to avoid forced marriage,” she said crying.

She said the chief justice of Pakistan, the chief justice of Peshawar High Court and the caretaker provincial chief minister should step in and ensure justice and protection to her and her brother.

Meanwhile, Director General of Irrigation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Naeem Khan along with Project Director Sajjad Khan and Superintendent Engineer Attaur Rehman on Wednesday visited the site of the Balambat Irrigation Scheme and expressed satisfaction about work.

Xen (Irrigation) Ghulam Ishaq Khan said work on the project had been completed.

He said the 76 kilometres long channel would irrigate 11,000 acres of fertile land and that the project had been completed at the cost of Rs750 million.

Mr Ishaq said the project would guarantee a green revolution in Jandol area of Lower Dir.

Sub-divisional officer Tahir Syed and sub-engineers Naseer and Ismail were also present on the occasion.

Opinion

Editorial

Punishing evaders
02 May, 2024

Punishing evaders

THE FBR’s decision to block mobile phone connections of more than half a million individuals who did not file...
Engaging Riyadh
02 May, 2024

Engaging Riyadh

OVER the last few weeks, there have been several exchanges involving top officials and their Saudi counterparts. At...
Freedom to question
02 May, 2024

Freedom to question

WITH frequently suspended freedoms, increasing violence and few to speak out for the oppressed, it is unlikely that...
Wheat protests
Updated 01 May, 2024

Wheat protests

The government should withdraw from the wheat trade gradually, replacing the existing market support mechanism with an effective new one over the next several years.
Polio drive
01 May, 2024

Polio drive

THE year’s fourth polio drive has kicked off across Pakistan, with the aim to immunise more than 24m children ...
Workers’ struggle
Updated 01 May, 2024

Workers’ struggle

Yet the struggle to secure a living wage — and decent working conditions — for the toiling masses must continue.