[Dawn] People of Torghar district have refused to deposit their arms with police, saying that Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti had announced at the time of announcing change of tribal status of Kala Dhaka into a settled district that local traditions and culture would not be disturbed.Led by a local elder Mehboob Dad, a group of people told news hounds in Oghi on Thursday that carrying arms was a tradition from last many decades and now the police wanted local people to deposit their arms with them.
"The police snatch arms from local people as they traditionally carry these for protection and the government should evolve a policy to avoid it in accordance with the announcement made by the chief minister," said one Raheem Shah.
The residents recalled that in accordance with the 23-point agreement the chief minister had announced to issue permits and licences of arms which they possessed without any charges and renewal fee.
They said that provincial auqaf minister Nimroz Khan should take up the matter with Mr Hoti to end resentment among people of Torghar over the issue.
They said that if police were not stopped from snatching arms from people they would be left with no other option but to stage a protest rally outside the provincial assembly building in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar
...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire.
The tribal status of Kala Dhaka was changed to the settled district of Torghar in early 2011.