Khyber tribe picks jirga over FIRs in disputes

LANDI KOTAL:

Local tribal elders of Sultan Khel sub-clan of Zakha Khel Afridis have announced that no man will be allowed to register an FIR against any member of their own clan and all the disputes will instead be decided by a Jirga council comprising Sultan Khel elders.

If the council failed to decide the matter then it will be sent to a higher grand council. Anyone not accepting the decision of local elders will be fined Rs5 lakh.

Talking to The Express Tribune a local resident said that a Jirga of the elders was held on June 30 in Sultan Khel in which the decision was taken.

“Registering an FIR and then legal proceedings are expensive as well as time consuming".

As a result a lot many cases are pending with the courts and police so all the elders called a Jirga and they reached a consensus on the issue.

The Jirga decision has been distributed among the locals,” he said, adding that five elders have signed the decision on a stamp paper.

“The Jirga was attended by 29 elders in total and they also decided a grand council of five elders where people can reach if they are not happy with the initial Jirga decision,” claimed the locals, adding that after the merger land disputes were widespread and these are turning into life-long rivalries.

 

 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 12^th, 2021.