Man arrested for hoisting Afghan flag on I’Day

PESHAWAR: A vendor was arrested after he reportedly hoisted an Afghan flag in Board Bazaar during Pakistan’s Independence Day celebrations.

The police report said Naimat, the Afghan national, hoisted an Afghan flag on a signboard in Board Bazaar when the people were celebrating the Independence Day. The report said the Town-III officials removed the flag after its pictures circulated on the social media. The police on Thursday arrested vegetable seller Naimat for allegedly provoking Afghans and trying to develop differences between refugees and locals on the occasion of Independence Day of Pakistan. A case was registered against the accused. Thousands of Afghan refugees own shops and houses and sell fruit, vegetables and other items in cabins and on pushcarts in the Board Bazaar. They have been living in the area and other parts of the provincial capital for around four decades, with the majority enjoying cordial relations with locals.