LAKKI MARWAT: A complete shutdown and wheel-jam strike was observed in Bannu city on Friday against the murder of three local traders in North Waziristan district, and the authorities’ failure to arrest the killers despite the lapse of over one week.

The strike call was given by Qaumi Grand Jirga.

Different rallies taken out from rural localities reached the Bannu city and participated in the protest camp, which the tribal elders had set up following the traders’ killing.

The protesters also forcibly shut the educational institutions.

The protesters wearing black armbands also marched through different bazaars in the city. They damaged a university bus, bikes of students and other properties when they tried to close the Bannu University.

Elders deplore delay in arrest of killers

The protesters, including students of affiliated colleges of the university, raised slogans against the varsity administration for not closing it.

At the protest camp, the elders said they won’t tolerate killing incidents in the region anymore.

“On one hand the government has failed to provide any relief to citizens, while on the other, the poor people are murdered when they leave their homes to earn a living,” Pir Syed Qaisar Abbas Shah, head of Bannu Bachao Tehreek, deplored.

He said for how long they would collect bodies of their relatives and who would take care of the families of the slain traders.

Other elders, including MPA Pakhtun Yar, said the residents of Bannu were not ready to become IDPs nor could they leave their businesses. They said they wanted peace for their children, vowing to continue the protest till the government gave them guarantee of peace.

Malik Iqbal Jadoon, Malik Sherin Malik, Malik Halimzada Wazir and Malik Israr also spoke on the occasion.

Meanwhile, in a statement, an official of the Bannu University said the protesters attacked the IT campus, damaging furniture, plants and other properties, including a bus and bikes of students.

“They also tortured teachers and students, while a student leader of protesters also opened fire, but luckily no one was hurt,” he claimed, saying the varsity administration with the help of police dispersed the protesters.

Also on Friday, regional police officer Syed Ashfaq Anwar went to North Waziristan, where he chaired a meeting with police officials to review progress on efforts to trace the killers of three Bannu traders.

Mr Anwar asked the district police authorities to take the case as a challenge and bring the culprits to justice without delay.

Published in Dawn, December 10th, 2022