Ex-Khasadars announce FIR registration boycott

Protesters at Bab-e-Khyber sit-in demand implementation of 22-point service agreement

KHYBER:

The All-Fata Khasadar and Levies Force Core Committee has announced a ban on the registration of First Information Reports (FIRs) at police stations across the tribal districts, as former Levies and Khasadar personnel continue their protest sit-in at Bab-e-Khyber over unresolved service issues.

The committee has demanded that the government accept its demands and fully implement the 22-point agreement reached with former Fata Levies and Khasadar personnel. It also called for immediate negotiations to resolve the remaining service and financial issues.

Talking to The Express Tribune, committee chairman Syed Jalal Wazir said the decision to oppose FIR registration at police stations had been taken in accordance with tribal traditions. He said the committee would resist the registration of FIRs at police station level across all tribal districts.

He claimed that when an FIR was registered at Milwat Police Station in Khyber district, the committee imposed a fine of Rs500,000 and another traditional penalty, which had already been collected. He said the action was part of the committee's announced stance against FIR registration.

Wazir said former Fata Levies and Khasadar personnel had been merged into the police force following the merger of the tribal areas with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, but they had yet to receive their basic rights and service benefits. He said promises made nearly seven years ago had also not been fully honoured.

"We are sitting in a protest camp at Bab-e-Khyber and will continue the sit-in until our demands are resolved," he said.

According to the committee, the Levies and Khasadar forces were absorbed into the police following the merger of former Fata with K-P. However, despite the passage of several years, key issues concerning promotions, pensions, service structure, training and rehabilitation remain unresolved.

The protesters are demanding complete implementation of the 22-point agreement and immediate talks with the committee to settle the outstanding matters.

The committee said an effective promotion mechanism had not been introduced despite the start of the policing system on April 4, 2019. It claimed that A-1 and B-1 examinations had also not been conducted.

It further alleged that some personnel were initially included in promotion lists but were subsequently removed, while promotions granted against vacant posts to certain personnel in South Waziristan were later withdrawn.

The committee has also demanded the launch of Phase-IV for remaining Levies and Khasadar personnel, particularly ministerial and non-combatant staff.

The pension issue has also emerged as a major concern. Protest leaders said some retired personnel were facing difficulties in receiving full pensions because their service was being counted from the date of their merger into the police.

They demanded that the previous service of former Levies and Khasadar personnel be recognised under the law and rules and that the pension issue be resolved permanently.

The committee has also demanded jobs for children of personnel who were martyred before the merger and reinstatement of former personnel dismissed during periods of unrest. It said some affected employees had approached courts and some had been reinstated, but several cases remained unresolved.