MANSEHRA: A jirga in Kolai-Palas has announced none of the local residents will contest the by-election for PK-62 constituency against PTI candidate and chief minister’s adviser Zargul Khan over the grant of the district’s status to the area.

Traditionally, the jirga, which consists of the elders of all local tribes, names election candidates for local constituencies.

“We are thankful to the PTI government for declaring Kolai-Palas a district and announce that no local resident will file nomination papers against you (Zargul Khan) in the PK-62 by-elections and even you will be our contender for the 2018 general elections,” jirga chief Sherbaz Khan told a public meeting in Palas on Friday in the presence of Mr Zargul.

Former MPA Maulana Asmatullah, who vacated the seat on the jirga’s orders, said the local residents unanimously supported the candidacy of Mr Zargul and he honoured their opinion.

He said he had tendered resignation to reciprocate the PTI government’s initiatives for the region’s development, especially the creation of Kolai-Palas district.

Says locals overjoyed by district’s status for Kolai-Palas

Mr Zargul thanked the jirga for support in the by-election and said the PTI would continue working for the development of the area.

Earlier, he was given a warm welcome during a visit to Darband, which was given the status of a tehsil lately.

ACCORD SIGNING CEREMONY DELAYED: The ceremony for the signing of an accord on the ownership of a disputed territory between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan will be held in Gilgit today (Saturday).

The event was scheduled to take place in Shitial area of Kohistan on Friday. However, the event didn’t take place due to the failure of the elders of Thor and Harban tribes to show up in light of the rugged terrain.

Political adviser to the CM Zargul Khan told reporters here that the venue of the accord signing ceremony had been changed from Shitial to Gilgit and that the ceremony would take place at 11am today (Saturday).

He said elders of Harban and Thor tribes, GB and KP lawmakers and deputy commissioners of both Upper Kohistan and Chilas districts would also attend the ceremony. The disputed territory measuring almost six kilometers and located alongside the Karakoram Highway on the KP-GB border is currently controlled by the federal government through the Frontier Constabulary.

The FC solders were deployed there after four tribesmen, three from Harban tribe and one from Thor, were killed in an exchange of fire in 2014.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2017