Old dispute over Shandoor rears its head
Chitral Polo Association President Shehzada Sikandar-ul-Mulk announced that the polo tournament would be held as per its schedule and at the same venue. PHOTO: Express
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Gilgit Baltistan (G-B) have once again locked horns over the ownership of the world’s highest polo ground – Shandoor as Chief Minister K-P has invited his G-B counterpart as a guest to the festival to be held from July 1 and G-B CM has done the same in return.
Both the governments claim that Shadoor is part of their territory which is basically a mountain pass on the border of the two provinces and which remains uninhabited most of the year due to heavy snowfall it receives in winter. “CM Mahmood Khan sent an invitation to CM Khalid Khurshid of G-B on June 14 while he received an invitation from Khurshid to be a guest of honour on Jun 20.
They mentioned the steps taken by both the governments to hold annual polo festival in Shandoor,” said an official of K-P government while talking to The Express Tribune. He said that Mahmood Khan invited G-B’s CM to be his guest on July 1 – the first day of the festival while Khurshid invited him to be his guest on July 2. When contacted former provincial minister Saleem Khan of Chitral said that Shandoor is part of Chitral from the British era.
“The residents of Laspur have their summer grazing grounds in Shandoor top till this day. The festival is organised by the district administration of Chitral each year,” he said, adding that it was funny that CM Khurshid of G-B has invited K-P CM to be his guest during the festival because it is being organised by the K-P government.” In 2010 the same thing happened when ANP was in power in K-P and a Jirga was assembled to solve the issue at Phander Rest House.
I was the head of K-P delegation. G-B demanded that they would host the festival but the demand was rejected as Shandoor is part of Chitral district,” he said, adding that after that G-B CM Mehdi Shah refused to send G-B team for the festival and as a result two rival teams from Chitral faced each other in the polo match. “If the festival is hosted by G-B then Chitral district will boycott the Shandoor festival,” he said.