SWAT: Residents of Bahrain tehsil of Swat have demanded of the authorities to lift the Section 144, allowing them to reconstruct their flood-hit hotels, shops and houses.

They made the demand during a meeting held in Bahrain Bazaar the other day.

Prominent among those in attendance were former provincial minister Malak Deedar Khan, president of Bahrain hotel association Haji Merajuddin, president of traders’ federation Khan Zada, Malak Jahangir, Bashir Khan and Bakht Nawaz.

They said the August 2022 floods had washed away hotels, shops, houses and other properties in the Bahrain Bazaar. They, however, regretted that the district administration had imposed the Section 144, banning any construction activity along the Swat River.

“We constructed hotels about 50 years ago after fulfilling all the legal requirements, but now the authorities have declared our hotels illegal. These buildings are legal as they are registered with the revenue department,” said a participant, adding Chief Minister Mahmood Khan and the Malakand division commissioner had multiplied miseries of the flood-hit people by imposing the restriction on reconstruction.

“We reject this ban, and expect the Swat deputy commissioner to visit the Bahrain Bazaar and examine the entire situation himself. If he finds any illegal construction, he can order its demolition,” another participant said.

The participants said over 300 shops and around 40 hotels were hit by the catastrophic floods, rendering about 7,000 people jobless.

They deplored that the relevant departments had failed to restore life even over three months after the floods had struck.

They deplored that the chief minister did not pay a visit to Bahrain despite it suffered the brunt of flood damage.

They termed the imposition of the Section 144 as tantamount to the economic murder of the poor people, and warned if the restriction was not lifted, they would stage protests in Peshawar and Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2022