PESHAWAR: In yet another gory incident, armed assailants gunned down seven members of a family, most of them children, inside a house on Phandu Road in the provincial capital as blood feuds continue to claim lives in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on daily basis. At least 13 people have been killed in separate incidents related to blood feuds in Peshawar city district over the last 24 hours. On Phandu Road in the limits of the Chamkani Police Station, armed men broke into a house late Monday night and gunned down seven persons, four of them children.
An official said those killed in the incident included one Habibullah, his wife, his two-year old daughter Sumayya, the wife of one Ibrahim, her sons Saleem,13, Salman,10, and Hilal, 6. One child is unconscious and is being treated at a hospital.
Police are investigating if the family had any enmity or there could be other motives. Three special teams headed by senior officers have been tasked with arresting the culprits. An official said police suspected the family had a dispute over a small piece of land.
The official said the police had arrested four suspects and were being interrogated.
A few hours before the incident, a district vice-president of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Malik Jehangir was killed while another person accompanying him was injured in a firing incident on Warsak Road in the city.
In retaliation, reports said, the relatives of Malik Jehangir shot dead Roohullah and Amanullah from the rival side early Tuesday.
The rivals again opened fire on the relatives of Malik Jehangir when they were coming back after offering his funeral prayers. Heavy contingents of police were called to guard the funeral prayers.
Three people were killed and two others were injured in another case of blood feud in Achar village in the limits of the Rahman Baba Police Station on Monday. The rivals were close relatives and had enmity for long.
The decades-old blood feuds in the rural areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been claiming hundreds of lives every year. There have been a number of blood feuds in Peshawar and other districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which started years ago over petty issues and claimed scores of lives.
A number of groups involved in these feuds are also promoting gun culture and terrorising the people by brandishing arms in public.
There are also reports that some of the groups, which are heavily armed, are actively involved in crimes, supporting and facilitating criminals, land grabbing and harassing innocent people by intentionally brandishing weapons in public. They are being supported by local influential families and individuals in an effort to use them for their own purposes in case of need.
After harbouring enmities for years, many can't do regular jobs and businesses and have to find ways to run their kitchen as well as manage ammunition and guards. This lands most of the groups in unlawful practices as well as crimes to manage their expenses.
The feuds also stop children from going to school. Instead, they are encouraged to learn how to handle and use weapons for their safety. The hundreds of blood feuds in KP cause inconvenience to thousands of other people in the vicinities due to a sense of insecurity.
An official informed there were 58 blood feuds only in the limits of one rural police station that have claimed several lives in the last few years.
"Most of these enmities are caused by property disputes. It starts from a small piece of land and the rivals sell several acres to arrange for the expenses to continue the feud. Besides, other causes of the feuds are women, ego and petty issues that are going on for the last many years," said an official.
Many want the police and government to act and save lives and settle disputes. They asked the police to especially go after the groups that are involved in land grabbing and crimes.
Some of the blood feuds have resulted in the death of almost all the male members in a family, leaving only women and children with nobody to feed them.
"Six brothers including Inayat, Sharafat, Qadir, Javed, Naimat and Mohib, sons of Abdul Ghaffar, were among seven persons who were killed in a single incident allegedly by Nasrullah, Abdul Majeed and others in the limits of the Inqilab Police Station in July 2018. The cause of the clash was a fight between their kids," said a source.
Another dispute between two families in the limits of the same police station resulted in the death of dozens of people from both sides as well as passers-by. Some reports said over 70 people were killed in firing by the two groups.
The issue started from a six to seven marla plot and resulted in loss of scores of precious lives as well as millions of rupees from both sides.
The Dispute Resolution Councils (DRCs) in Peshawar and the rest of the KP could do a good job in resolving disputes in a speedy manner. DRCs and jirgas in all the districts need to be made active so they intervene and settle issues before they claim more lives.
