K-P CM opposes Tirah operation, hints at Islamabad sit-in

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Sunday levelled serious allegations against the federal government, declared that he would not allow any operation in Tirah, and hinted at staging a sit-in in Islamabad.

Friction between the federal and K-P governments over the Tirah Valley situation has continued unabated as the former maintains that no operation is being carried out while CM Afridi sticks by his claims. The federal government maintains that only small-scale, intelligence-based operations against militants are under way and that no mass evacuation is required. However, the provincial government rejects this claim.

Addressing the Khyber Peace Jirga, he said he had sensed in advance that developments were under way and that an operation was being planned in Tirah.

He asked participants whether they had been displaced forcibly or voluntarily, to which they unanimously raised their hands in favour of forced displacement. When he asked whether they wanted to return to Tirah or proceed to Islamabad for protest, a majority supported holding a sit-in in the federal capital.

Afridi claimed that conspiracies were under way to impose governor’s rule in the province. He announced that he would visit all tribal districts to seek public opinion on staging a sit-in in Islamabad. He said that even if he were disqualified by the courts or removed by force, he would not retreat from what he described as the rights of the tribal people.

Read: Bara jirga demands security guarantees

Recalling past events, he said residents of Tirah had been displaced previously and that the area had remained peaceful for four years after 2022, but this time decisions for another operation were made behind closed doors.

The chief minister categorically stated that he would not allow a new operation in Tirah. He alleged that during previous operations, public losses were not compensated and payments of up to Rs400,000 for destroyed houses were not made, while billions of rupees were embezzled in the name of internally displaced persons.

He said that when he allocated Rs4 billion for the affected population, the federation accused him of corruption, adding that he was demanding not Rs4 billion but Rs100 billion for the victims. He also questioned why outstanding dues amounting to Rs1,000 billion owed by the federation to the province had not been paid.

Referring to the approaching month of Ramazan, Afridi said the hardships of the affected people could increase further and announced that the registration process would be accelerated. He added that he had received an invitation to meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and would raise the province’s issues forcefully at that meeting.

Also Read: Federal govt terms Khyber jirga a ‘charge sheet’ against K-P govt, seeks apology

Afridi also strongly condemned recent incidents of terrorism in Balochistan. He said he had repeatedly warned that terrorists were being resettled, but these warnings were dismissed by the federal government as propaganda.

He alleged that militants had gradually reached homes and villages, questioning how they crossed borders, passed through dozens of checkposts and managed to settle in populated areas.

He claimed that when militants took refuge in villages, mortar shells were fired at civilians, resulting in the killing of children in several attacks. He further alleged that the federal government had even labelled these slain children as terrorists.

Thousands of families remain displaced from Tirah Valley in Khyber district as the K-P government oversaw their relocation amid deteriorating security conditions and heavy snowfall.

According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), the evacuation began on January 10. As of then, 11,400 families had been registered, with more than 10,000 relocated to safer areas, including Bara and Peshawar.

The federal and provincial governments traded barbs over who had authorised the evacuation process after hundreds of Tirah residents vacated their homes ahead of planned military action against militants.

CM Afridi opposed the operation and what he described as the forced displacement in Tirah Valley, warning that decisions taken “behind closed doors” had once again plunged the region into suffering and instability. He lamented that elderly people, women and children were being uprooted during freezing winter conditions.

Read: PHC told neither federal nor K-P govt authorised Tirah operation

In a detailed video message earlier this week, the chief minister said that “extremely harsh conditions were once again being imposed on Tirah and the people were suffering severe consequences of decisions taken behind closed doors”.

The same day, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif stated that no military operation was being carried out in Tirah Valley, describing the movement of people as a routine, seasonal process prompted by harsh weather and snowfall.

On Saturday, the Bara Siyasi Ittehad — an alliance of political parties in Bara in a jirga — demanded the immediate implementation of its unanimously adopted declaration, calling for the restoration of lasting peace in Tirah and a clear guarantee of sustainable stability in the future.

The alliance called for the dignified return of all displaced families and demanded that every promise and agreement made with them be formally recognised and practically implemented.

The declaration sought impartial investigations into alleged political interference, nepotism, administrative failures and corruption in the registration of Tirah’s displaced residents, and demanded action against those responsible.

It also urged the provincial government to fulfil its constitutional duty by eliminating kidnapping for ransom, extortion threats and the climate of fear among citizens.

Meanwhile, the federal government termed the Khyber National Jirga a “charge sheet” against the K-P government, alleging poor governance and calling on provincial authorities to apologise for what it described as the “construction of a false narrative”.

Also Read: Tirah operation 'imposed without consent': Afridi

Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said the jirga had concluded that provincial authorities were guilty of mismanagement and corruption and had failed to deliver for the people.

“This is a major charge sheet against the K-P provincial government — the Rs4 billion allocated for people’s relief, displacement, registration and assistance had no accountability,” he said.