Revenue staff extends pen-down strike to entire Hazara

ABBOTTABAD: The pen-down strike observed by the revenue field staff including patwaris in Haripur has been extended to the entire Hazara division, bringing all routine revenue related matters to a grinding halt.

In a statement, Divisional President of Anjuman-e-Patwaris Sajid Hussain Jehangiri on Wednesday announced to extend the strike in all the districts of Hazara till withdrawal of cases against patwaris in Haripur district.

He made the announcement at a meeting here. The office-bearers of associations from different districts, including Abbottabad, attended the meeting.The strike, which began on August 27, was sparked by the lodging of an FIR against two revenue officials, Muhammad Siddique and Dilnawaz Khan by the Anti-Corruption Department.

The strike has now spread to the entire Hazara Division, causing significant disruptions to services such as recovery and collection, domicile verifications, processing of revenue reports and disbursal activities.

The revenue staff have been demanding the quashing of the FIR as they claimed it was lodged illegally. They also demanded an inquiry against the officials of the Anti-Corruption Department.