Children of martyred levies personnel demand rights at Khyber protest

Lament they were left to live a miserable life after anti-terrorism operations in tribal areas

JAMRUD/KHYBER AGENCY: Children of personnel of levies and Khasadar forces, martyred in the war against terrorism, set up a protest camp in Khyber district's Jamrud town on Monday.

The youngsters, carrying pictures of their slain fathers, maintained that officials of the Khasadar forces had worked shoulder to shoulder with the army, Frontier Corps (FC) and police to thwart terrorism from the area and had sacrificed their lives for the country.

PHOTO: EXPRESS

They lamented that those in power had acted with negligence in ensuring rights for the families of the deceased soldiers. They also regretted that they were not given any alternative jobs or compensation as per the Shuhda Package.



After successfully clearing the region from the terrorism, the children of the martyred soldiers have been left to live a miserable life, they maintained.

The orphaned children also complained against the recent suspension of monthly awards given by the political administration. “If our demands are not met, then we will stage a protest outside the parliament,” said one of the demonstrators.

PHOTO: EXPRESS

In a separate protest in Khyber, Khasadar forces working for three tehsils Jamrud, Bara and Landi Kotil jointly staged a sit-in to denounce the recent merger of former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, fearing that the measure had rendered their jobs redundant.



However, former parliamentary leader Alhaj Shah Jee Gul Afridi tried to calm down the demonstrators. He ensured them his full support to resolve issues involving Khasadar forces and vowed to highlight their grievances at every level.

PHOTO: EXPRESS

Afridi also vowed that he would urge the authorities concerned to increase salaries and benefits awarded to the people working for Khasadar forces.