In a bid to escape the sizzling heat of southern Bannu city, tribesmen from Mohammad Khel and other hamlets of Boya tehsil of North Waziristan have arrived in Rajjar town of Charsadda district.
“We were left with no option,” said Muhammad Younas, a schoolteacher who has taken refuge in a rented house in Rajjar, along with his family.
At least 35 individuals are sheltering in the house rented to them by the locals. The landlord has yet to inform them about rent and other terms and conditions but they are happy that they are living in a building instead of an IDP tent village established by the government near Saidgee checkpost.
Talking to Pakistan Today, Najibullah and Younas said, “Neither are we registered with the government as IDPs nor are we receiving any assistance from government functionaries.”
They said that they had abandoned their homes and proceeded to Bannu before the process of registration of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) had started. They demanded that the government order registration of all those tribesmen who have abandoned their homes in North Waziristan.
Meanwhile, 45 to 50 individuals from seven families are taking refuge in the Government Girls Middle School building in Rajjar. Most of these IDPs are women and children and are in need of food and medicines.
Talking to Pakistan Today, a young boy, Nasarullah, said, “We have spent most of money on rents and fares and are now living from hand to mouth.”
Answering a question, Nasarullah said that they had reached Rajjar about two weeks back after a two-day journey. He said that they had abandoned their homes and proceeded to Bannu without any belongings.
A local social activist Tariq Bacha said that upon arrival, these tribesmen were helped and assisted by local people from their limited resources. He endorsed the complaints of the IDPs, saying that the government has yet to realise its responsibilities.
CHARSADDA’S LOVE-HATE RELATION WITH IDPs:
According to reports, the deputy commissioner of Charsadda had tried to deny entry to the IDPs but the locals had resisted his moves.
A couple of days back, IDPs residing in the school in Charsadda were forcibly boarded on tractor trolleys, to take them to an unknown place but the plan couldn’t materialize after locals protested.
Bacha said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan had also shown resentment over such an act on part of Charsadda’s deputy commissioner.