MINGORA: A large number of people belonging to the Gujar tribe on Monday staged a protest against the demolition of Gujar Secretariat in Fizagat during the ongoing anti-encroachment drive in the Swat valley.
The protestors, who had come from Swat, Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Buner, Shangla, Malakand, Chitral, Bajaur and elsewhere in the province, first gathered at the site of demolished secretariat in Fizagat and then proceeded to the Nishat Chowk in Mingora in a big procession led by Jalat Khan and others. The protesters were holding banners and placards inscribed with slogans against the government and in favour of their demands. They were also chanting slogans against the district administration and the KP government for pulling the Gujar Secretariat.
Addressing the protestors, Jalat Khan, Muhammad Ayub Khan, Dr Shamsur Rahman Shams, Sarfaraz Khan, Dr Khalid Mahmood, Usman Gujar and others said that Chief Minister Mahmood Khan had hurt the feelings of the people of the Gujar tribe by demolishing their secretariat.
They said they would not remain silent over the ‘cruel’ act on the part of district administration and provincial government. The protesters set June 30 deadline for the reconstruction of the secretariat or else they would launch a protest movement against the government. It may be mentioned that the district administration along with police and Irrigation Department launched an anti-encroachment drive recently. Most of the buildings including hotels and restaurants built illegally along the bank of Swat River, were demolished during the action.
The buildings including the decades-old construction done on the government property was razed to the ground. Due to the illegal construction on both sides of the river, the natural landscape and beauty of the valley had been badly affected.