Writ Of State Has Evaporated From Our Area: Mohsin Dawar

Writ Of State Has Evaporated From Our Area: Mohsin Dawar
The writ of the state has evaporated in areas straddling the border with Afghanistan, with incidents of terrorism and target killing increasing.

A warning was also issued on using the law as a weapon against political opponents.

This was stated by National Assembly Member from North Waziristan Mohsin Dawar on the floor of the lower house of Parliament on Friday.

In a brief speech, Dawar started off by raising the issue of local National Democratic Movement (NDM) leader Atiq Dawar being target killed.

"I was in China when I received the information that a local party member Atiq Dawar was killed in a targeted attack," he said.

Dawar went on to express his complete lack of confidence in the state's ability to track Atiq's murderers.

READ MORE: NDM Politician Atiqur Rehman Assassinated In North Waziristan

"We know what investigations will be held there," Dawar asked rhetorically before adding, "The state's writ has all but vanished there."

"Forget investigations; we face difficulties in even registering an FIR," he said, adding that raising the issue on the floor of the house on multiple occasions has had no effect.

"Two suicide blasts took place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, one in Bara and one in Peshawar. The pace at which these attacks are increasing is troubling," he said.

Dawar went on to lament the non-serious attitude of his colleagues to this grave threat.

READ MORE: Trouble On The Western Frontier

"We have seen the drama of seriousness of the house after Peshawar (Police Office) blast. There is no debate or joint session over these attacks," he complained.

"There will not be any seriousness on this issue until and unless these attacks reach the doorstep of mainstream Pakistan."

Abductions in Kashmore

Dawar also raised the disappearance of Khalid Bhittani, a resident of Tank who was working as a security guard in Kashmore and was abducted by dacoits.

"It has become routine that people are abducted, tortured, and a video of theirs is recorded and posted online," he said.

Dawar said that after watching Bhittani's videos, some members of his clan travelled to Kashmore and blocked the road in protest, but police have been unable to trace him.

READ MORE: Senate Panel Raises Questions Over Police Ability To Enforce State Writ In Sindh’s Kashmore

He urged National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf to urge the Sindh government to file a report on the matter to the National Assembly.

Akhtar Mengal and Wadh

Dawar put a spotlight on the situation in the Wadh area of Balochistan.

"Akhtar Mengal, a politician from the area, is being pushed against the wall by vigilante "death squads" in broad daylight," Dawar expressed.

"The state does not have the capacity to stop them, or is an attempt being made to silence a politician," he asked.

He urged the parliament to play its role and the federal and provincial governments to intervene.

Political victimisation of PTI workers

"What is happening with the current political scenario in the country is troubling. For the past 75 years, we have seen that one political party takes over and targets its opponents," he said.

When the opposing political parties take power, they target those who had targeted them, and this vicious cycle continues, Dawar continued.

"What is happening today with workers of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), they should be treated as per the law," he said, adding, "The law should not be weaponised."

He suggested that a series of fake cases are lodged against political opponents just to keep them in jail.

"Those who have committed a crime, present them in court and prosecute them, but you cannot frame fresh charges against them overnight in a far-off district," Dawar said.

"Recently, Nasrullah Wazir, the father of an MPA from South Waziristan, was picked up from his home in the middle of the night," the North Waziristan MNA said, adding that Wazir is a retired bureaucrat who has no ties with the PTI except that his son was an MPA.

READ MORE: Parvez Elahi Detained For 30 Days Under 3-MPO 1960 To ‘Maintain Law And Order’

"There are many other cases where family members such as children, brothers have been picked up," he said, adding, "There is a fear that this cycle will repeat when they come back in power because governments on average last two and a half years."

Coal miners in Harnai

Dawar said that coal miners are being targeted in Harnai, where their trucks are torched and dynamites are thrown into mines, endangering miners.

"An agreement was reached where miners would pay FC Rs230 per truck to give security," Dawar said. He raised the question of why extra money needs to be paid to the paramilitary security force when they draw a salary.

When the agreement ended, the security was withdrawn, and attacks increased, he said, noting that this was admitted to by the director general of Balochistan's mines and mineral department during a meeting of the National Assembly's human rights committee on Friday.

Watch his full speech below: