MANSEHRA: The nazims and naib nazims of village and neighbourhood councils in Mansehra have formed a committee to plan agitation against the provincial government’s failure to give them funds for development and non-development expenditure including payment of rent of their offices.

They named Basharat Ali, Zamir Javed Yousufzai, Mohammad Hafiz, Zainul Abideen, Mohammad Mehmood and Naseer Ahmad the members of the committee.

“Since the installation of local bodies, the government hasn’t paid us even a single penny, we have been left with no option but to close offices set up in rented buildings and agitate,” nazim of the Safada village council Basharat Ali told a meeting of nazims and naib nazims held here on Monday.

He said nazims and naib nazims of the village and neighbourhood councils on the directives of the local government department not only rented offices but the government didn’t provide funds for the payment of rent.

Form committee to finalise agitation plan

The village council nazim said the government didn’t make the required appointments to the nazims’ offices in violation of its commitment.

“Our offices have been without furniture even eight months after the introduction of the new local government system in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” he said.

The village council nazim said the denial of development funds to village and neighbourhood councils had denied the common man the benefit of the system.

“We met the LG assistant director lately and asked him to transfer funds in the village councils’ accounts but he refused to do so saying the finance department’s formal communication is required for the purpose,” he said.

Mr Basharat said the committee would meet the local government representatives from across the district to engage them to agitate for rights.

“The district nazim not only supported our stand but also assured us of support in case of agitation,” he said.

MAN KILLED, WIFE INJURED: A gunman killed a man and critically injured his wife over enmity in Loharbanda area of Mansehra early on Monday.

The attacker later set fire to the body and the injured woman, who suffered burns.

The woman, Ansa Bibi, told the police that Mohammad Adnan barged into her house and fired gunshots indiscriminately killing her husband and injuring her.

She said the attacker later sprinkled petrol on the two and set them on fire before fleeing.

The woman said the neighbours rescued her after she made loud shouts, and shifted her to the Ayub Medical Complex, Abbottabad, over critical condition.

The police shifted the charred body to the King Abdullah Teaching Hospital for autopsy.

Head of the police reporting centre at the Kath Mohammad Riaz said the people had rescued the couple’s a two-year-old son, who was kept at the neighbour’s house.

The police lodged an FIR and began search for the suspected killer.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2016