NDM chief Mohsin Dawar injured by cops firing

Police claim they retaliated when ex-MNA’s activists attacked security forces camp in N Waziristan

MIRAN SHAH:

National Democratic Movement (NDM) chief Mohsin Dawar and at least 14 of his party activists were injured on Saturday in the Miran Shah area of North Waziristan when police opened fire on them while they were protesting against the delay in election results in NA-40 from where the former MNA was contesting.

In their defence, the police claimed that the NDM supporters opened fire at a security camp in the area and the former lawmaker was injured in the leg after they retaliated.

According to reports received from eyewitnesses, following a two-day delay in the results, the NDM chief and his activists were protesting against the refusal of permission to enter the returning officer's office located in Miran Shah’s Cantonment area when the firing started.

There have been conflicting reports about the firing. Official sources claimed that the initiative was taken by the protesters, when they attacked a security camp in the area.

However, the protesters maintained that the police personnel stationed near the stadium gate opened fire on them, in which three of them were killed -- Ayub Wazir, Wahab Khan Dawar, and Wahabullah.

The injured protesters were first shifted to Miran Shah Hospital and then Bannu. The NDM chief was shifted to Peshawar, where sources said his condition was out of danger.

Read Dawar's convoy escapes attack in North Waziristan

After the incident, the situation in the entire area became tense, while JUI-F candidate Mufti Misbahuddin's victory from NA-40 was also announced.

NDM supporters have blocked roads in various areas against the incident, affecting the flow of vehicular traffic.

Before the incident, Dawar had shared a post on social media platform X that he was leading the polls as per the latest results received in his constituency NA-40 but there were “blatant attempts” to rig the final results. He claimed that 27 presiding officers were being held hostage at Shewa Qila and FC personnel were forcing them to sign a blank Form-45.

Taking to X after the firing, NDM leader Bushra Gohar held the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) responsible for the attack.

Afrasiab Khattak, another NDM leader, maintained that the law-enforcement agencies opened fire on Dawar and the other protesters.

BNP-M chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal also condemned the attack on Dawar in post on X, maintaining that it was carried out to change the results.

PPP leader Farhatullah Babar in post on X demanded a probe into the attack on the NDM chief.

He further called for punishing the “trigger happy” police personnel, who had fired the gunshots at the protesters.

The K-P Bar Council also condemned the murderous attack on Dawar, saying that unrest was increasing in the country, raising a question mark on the performance of security agencies.

Separately, one person was killed and two injured in a bomb blast near the residence of newly elected PTI-backed independent MNA Zubair Wazir, who won from NA-42, in the Karikot area of Wana tehsil, Lower South Waziristan district.

The person, who died in the attack, has been identified as Hayatullah. The injured include Shah Jahan and Rashid Khan.

(With input from our correspondent in Peshawar)