Deadly disagreement: Five members of a family killed over land dispute

Argument over trespassing wheat fields led to the bloodshed.

BANNU:

Five people, including three brothers, a father and son, were killed over a dispute between two groups in the cantonment area of Bannu on Sunday morning.

DSP Headquarters Sanaullah Khan Marwat told The Express Tribune the incident occurred at around 6:35am. The DSP said Noor Aslam reported to the police that he and his family members were sitting in their fields in Babri Kalan Mamash Khel when Khaista Noor, Khoba Noor, Nazo Noor, Hazrat Noor, Badigh Zaman, Khaliq Noor, Naik Muhammad and Sakhi Muhammad shot at them with AK-47s and pistols. He said Aslam’s brothers Sher Adat, Gul Raif and Zarullah were killed along with their cousin Faridullah and his father Muhammad Sher.

The DSP said the accused managed to escape after the incident.

Marwat said initial investigation had revealed that the accused and deceased had an old land dispute and early Sunday morning, the accused were returning from their wheat fields after a night of harvesting when the now deceased family members stopped them. The accused were asked to take another route as they had trespassed on their land. This led to a fight between the two groups in which accused Khoba was injured with a sickle.

The DSP said Khoba was taken to a private clinic for treatment while the others went to their houses to pick up their weapons and came back to shoot their rivals.

Marwat said deceased Faridullah was a stick orderly of Bannu SP Investigation while the accused, Nazo, was a constable at Saddar police station. A case was lodged against the accused and further investigation is under way.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 12^th, 2014.