KP Assembly seeks judicial probe into Mardan ‘drone strikes’

PESHAWAR: Condemning the reported drone strikes in the Katlang tehsil of Mardan, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Friday demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident and summoned the home secretary and inspector general of police and to explain the circumstances surrounding the attack.

The issue was raised during the assembly session chaired by Speaker Babar Saleem Swati.Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MPA Humayun Khan initiated the discussion, stating that the affected shepherd family had legally acquired the land on lease and possessed all relevant documentation. He called for a thorough judicial probe into the matter.

MPA Zarshed Khan, whose constituency includes the area targeted by the strikes, said the drone attacks occurred just two days before Eidul Fitr, leading to the deaths of nine innocent people, including two children and two women. He said the residents of Babuzai were so grief-stricken and fearful that they did not celebrate Eid.

“These shepherds, belonging to the Gujjar community from Swat, have been migrating to the area during winters for the past 60 to 70 years,” he said, adding that they had acquired the land on lease for six months at a cost of Rs500,000 and planned to return home after Eid. “But two days before Eid, they were targeted in drone strikes. Their bodies were placed on the motorway in protest.”

Zarshed said that the victims were innocent civilians, not terrorists. “If a mistake was made, it should be acknowledged—we are ready to accept an apology,” he said, while also condemning the statement issued by Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur on the incident.

MPA Iftikhar Mashwani made a demand to know who had carried out the operation and why. He called for summoning the Home Secretary and the IGP and to explain why innocent citizens were killed.

Malik Adeel Iqbal described the incident as tragic and said it appeared to be based on flawed intelligence.

Shafi Jan noted that between 2014 and 2018, Pakistan saw 430 drone strikes resulting in 1,800 deaths. “Drone strikes are never precise—others always get caught in the crossfire,” he said, adding that the already fragile peace in the southern districts could be further destabilized.Shafi Jan rejected the federal interior minister Atta Tarar’s claim that no civilians were among the victims. “If you knew terrorists were present, why were civilians killed in the operation?” The MPA also confirmed that women and children were among the deceased.

Multiple lawmakers, including Sardar Riaz, Sardar Shah Jehan, and Ali Shah, also spoke on the matter and supported the call for a judicial inquiry and a formal assembly resolution on the incident.