Five killed over land dispute in Malakand

BATKHELA: Five persons, including a passer-by, were killed over a land dispute in the mountainous Palai area in Thana Baizai tehsil in Malakand district on Saturday.

The locals said that a dispute over a piece of land had been running between the landlords and the tenants since long.They said that the dispute took an ugly turn when the two parties traded fire. As a result, two persons each from both the parties, and a passer-by, whose names could not be ascertained, were killed.

Meanwhile, the landlords placed the bodies on Swat Expressway and blocked it for traffic. The staged a protest sit-in and demanded action against the rival party. The protestors alleged that outsiders had come to the area and grabbed their land.

Later, the protestors opened the road after the officials of district administration and law enforcing agencies held talks with the leaders.Also, the local residents staged a protest against the non-arrest of accused involved in the killing of social worker Muhammad Zada.The protesters led by Amn Jirga chairman Syed Kamal Shah Bacha, blocked the Sakhakot-Peshawar road for traffic and demanded immediate arrest of the accused.