Social activist arrested in Parachinar

PARACHINAR: Social activist Malik Zartaj, who had been staging a sit-in protest outside the press club here for the past 50 days, was arrested by police on Sunday.

Musarrat Bangash, a social activist, claimed that plainclothes persons, accompanied by police officers, smashed the windows of Malik Zartaj car before forcibly detaining him.In response, demonstrators from various parts of the Kurram district have taken to the streets in protest. Participants of the ongoing sit-in have now moved to the main road leading to Peshawar, where they have begun a peace march. Marchers, including women and children, carried placards demanding the immediate release of Malik Zartaj and the reopening of blocked roads in the region.

Speaking to protesters, Musarrat Bangash said, “We have been peacefully protesting with Malik Zartaj for 50 days, demanding safe and open routes, but our voices were ignored. Now, with his arrest, we are left with no choice but to take our protest to the roads. This march will continue until our demands are met.