Kohistan bifurcation: Action against Pattan committee members demanded

Locals from Palas say route to hospitals blocked by other tehsil’s members

PESHAWAR: Tribes from Palas have demanded that the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government take action against the Pattan committee for not following Peshawar High Court’s decision in which it termed bifurcation of Kohistan district as ‘unconstitutional’.

While speaking to journalists at Peshawar Press Club on Wednesday, Advocate Tasleem Akhtar said schools and hospitals were situated in Pattan tehsil but its residents have imposed restrictions on Palas tribes. He added Palas tehsil locals were not allowed to cross River Indus since the bridge was being manned.

He said, “A committee is being backed by elected members, which is not letting Palas tehsil residents visit hospitals.” He pointed out the dispute could lead to a possible clash between the groups, resulting in bloodshed.

Akhtar commented, “We request the Supreme Court of Pakistan to take suo motu action and resolve the dispute before it leads to bloodshed.”

In February 2014, the PTI-led government issued a statement declaring “Lower Kohistan” the seventh administrative unit in Hazara Division, comprising two tehsils – Pattan and Palas. Pattan was declared the headquarters of the district.

One week later, tribes from Palas opposed the decision to declare Pattan as the district headquarters. They launched a protest and challenged the decision in the Abbottabad bench of the Peshawar High Court (PHC).

In January 2016, PHC declared the 2013 notification through which Kohistan district was bifurcated into two parts as unconstitutional.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th,  2016.