KOHAT, April 5: One of the two groups whose rivalry has claimed at least 72 lives during the last five years, has accused the local police of harassment, demanding government protection in an appeal to the NWFP chief minister.

While speaking at a press conference at the local press club on Thursday, a spokes-man of Pir Habib Shah group, Pir Amin Faisal, chief coordinator of the NGOs working in Hangu, accused the NWFP police of disturbing peace and harming innocent people.

He alleged that the younger brother of Pir Habib was arrested by the police on the orders of Kohat SSP Abid Ali while he was going to expose the wrongdoings of the district police at a press conference.

He claimed that on March, 2, 2003, a pedestrian was killed by the firing of a police Assistant Sub-Inspector, Iqbal Khan, who actually fired at Pir Habib Shah’s car, but the police, he said, arrested Pir Habib Shah and registered a murder case against him.

The spokesman also produced three shopkeepers as eyewitnesses who claimed that the pedestrian was killed by the ASI and not by Mr Shah as alleged by the police.

He also produced four Afghn children, who claimed to be graziers.  

The police had been accusing the group of molesting children and also harassing Afghan women.

He said that in all the past cases Pir Habib Shah had been acquitted by the courts but the police wanted to implicate the group in false cases.

He also alleged that he had no confidence in the NWFP police chief, that was why he decided to call a press conference and expose the  atrocities of the police against them.

The SSP, in response to the allegations, has repeatedly claimed  that the group had set up parallel police stations and a court to decided criminal cases after receiving money from the culprits.

Many councillors, belonging to various union councils  of Kohat and Hangu, and the elders of the area were also present during the press conference.