ANP MPA concerned at poor law & order in Buner

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) provincial general secretary Sardar Hussain Babak on Wednesday said that militants had resurfaced in Buner district and the people were receiving phone calls and letters demanding extortion money.

Talking to The News, he said he would discuss the poor law and order situation in Buner with his party leaders to devise future line of action.

He claimed the militants had collected millions of rupees as extortion money during the last more than a month. “The environment of fear has forced the people to remain silent. Nobody is admitting that they have paid extortion,” he added.

Babak, who was elected MPA from Buner in both the 2013 and 2018 general elections, said the militants were regularly visiting Pir Baba, Patha, Patay, Balo Khan, Malikpur, Kalil, Gadezai and Shalbandai villages in Upper Buner and demanding extortion money from the people.

“People in these areas are living in constant fear. They have no trust in the security institutions,” he said. “The militants are carrying out their activities so openly that the people believe that they are doing this with the permission of security forces,” he maintained.

He said the people ask the question as to how the militants manage to come to Buner, collect extortion money and then leave without being apprehended. “This is a very basic question that how the militants manage to come and leave without being caught,” he added.

He said it was unfortunate that the practice was taking place for more than a month but the media was not reporting it. The ANP leader said the militants include locals and non-locals roam in a group of five to eight persons.

He said the people’s morale is down because they have not trust in the security forces. “Their fear is justified as those who have reported such people to the security forces in the past have been targeted,” he claimed. Even officials in Buner have received threatening letters, he claimed. “I also received a letter yesterday,” he added. He said the officials were not contacting those receiving threats. “The DIG Police didn’t receive my phone call. It is unfortunate that they are not making any security arrangements. This has raises questions,” he added.