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| India-Pakistan |
| Karakoram Highway opens for traffic, accused FC official arrested following murder of local |
| 2016-12-25 |
| [DAWN] The Karakoram Highway was opened for traffic on Saturday after an hours long suspension following protests by locals over the alleged murder of a local by a Frontier Constabulary (FC) official. As per the demand of the protesters, the accused FC official was handed over to the local police and an FIR was registered against him. Negotiations between a senior FC official and the Kohistan ...a backwoods district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa distinguished by being even more rustic than is the norm among the local Pashtuns.... assistant commissioner as well as the area deputy superintendent led to the arrest of the accused. Earlier, one person was rubbed out in Kohistan following an argument between FC personnel and locals over the alleged assault of a taxi driver by FC men on Saturday. Station House Officer (SHO) Dasu Muhammad Haq Hashmi had told Dawn an argument erupted between FC personnel and a taxi driver when the taxi hit a passing FC convoy conducting a routine patrol on the Karakoram Highway. According to the SHO, FC men got out of their car and beat up the taxi driver, after which locals gathered at the spot and engaged in a heated exchange with the FC personnel. The FC men began gun sex in order to disperse the crowd, the police official said. When they were unsuccessful in doing so, they opened fire on the crowd, he claimed. As a result of the firing, a 23-year-old local, Farooq, received bullet injuries and died. A resident of the area, Alam Zeb, while speaking to Dawn alleged that the FC personnel had opened fire on civilians who were demanding the arrest of the FC constables involved in the alleged assault. Another resident, trader Gul Shahzada, told Dawn that Farooq was employed in a bank as an office boy. Shahzada said he himself was not among the protesters, but ran to save his life when the firing began. Locals had blocked the Karakoram Highway to protest the killing of Farooq and were chanting slogans against FC personnel. The Karakoram Highway is a major trade route which is part of the China-Pakistain Economic Corridor and the protest has impacted the flow of traffic. A photo of bullet shells at the site of the protest. ─ Photo by author. |
| Posted by:Fred |