Akakhel tribe wants jirga to resolve land dispute

PESHAWAR: Tribal elders from Akakhel tribe, Bara in Khyber Agency, on Thursday demanded the government to constitute a jirga to resolve the land dispute between tribes of Orakzai and Khyber Agency.

Speaking at a news conference, Abdul Qayyum Afridi, Iqbal Afridi and Ajab Khan Afridi alleged that the tribesmen of Perozkhel tribe in Orakzai Agency had illegally occupied their lands and cut forests in Akakhel Okho Kunda, Zari Ghundai and Maqbari Drang after their return to hometowns in June 2016.

The tribal elders said the Akakhel tribe was displaced from native towns as a result of military operation in Khyber Agency and was still living as internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

They said the elders of Akakhel informed administration of Orakzai and Khyber tribal agencies to help resolve the dispute but they did not take this issue seriously. “Now we appeal to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor and Army high-ups to resolve the land dispute between the bordering towns or else we will stage a sit-in in front of Governor’s House in Peshawar,” Iqbal Afridi warned.He added that the land dispute could lead to bloody feuds amongst the bordering tribes of Khyber and Orakzai tribal agencies.