TOBA TEK SINGH: The Punjab Board of Revenue (BoR) has sought comments and suggestions of Faisalabad commissioner with regard to the demand of two lawmakers from the area -- MNA Riaz Fatyana and his wife provincial women development minister MPA Ashifa Fityana -- for elevating Kamalia tehsil to the status of a district.

The BoR, in a letter dated April 2, has informed the commissioner that the two parliamentarians (Mr Fityana and his wife) had requested the Punjab chief minister to declare Kamalia a district.

Mr Fityana was elected to the National Assembly from NA-113 (Kamalia) on the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf ticket, while his wife was elected to the Punjab Assembly from PP-122 also from the party’s platfrom.

The BoR asked the commissioner to examine the request in the light of section 5 of the Punjab Land Revenue Act 1967 and furnish a comprehensive report along with his own comments and recommendations so that the case might be finalised.

Meanwhile, Asad Hafeez, a resident of Pirmahal, who headed (now disbanded) ‘Pirmahal Tehsil Banao Tehrik’ -- strongly opposed the idea, saying that after years long struggle people had secured tehsil status for Pirmahal in 2013 that had been attached to Toba district.

He said the people of Pirmahal tehsil would never accept its inclusion in the proposed Kamalia district and in case Kamalia was made a new district they would prefer to be part of Toba.

He also criticised PTI MPA from PP-123 (Pirmahal) Sonia Ali Raza for her silence on the issue and demanded she should oppose the inclusion of Pirmahal tehsil into the proposed new district of Kamalia.

Toba PTI leader Rana Khalid Mahmood also opposed Mr Fityana’s demand and said if accepted it would reduce Toba to a small district as Kamalia was its biggest tehsil.

INAUGRATION: PTI MPA Bilal Asghar Warraich on Tuesday inaugrated Rescue 1122 emergency service at Gojra.

Deputy Commissioner Mohsin Rashid and District Police Officer (DPO) Sadiq Ali Dogar were also present.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2019