Plea in Pakistan court against landmine blasts in tribal areas

Peshawar [Pakistan], June 10 : The rising number of landmine explosions inside Pakistan's tribal districts, especially South Waziristan, has compelled lawyers to move court to force the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) governments to demine the region and compensate the families of blast victims.
Dawn reported that five lawyers have moved the Peshawar High Court against the growing landmine explosions in the tribal districts.
In the joint petition, Sajjad Ahmad Mehsud and four other lawyers from former Federally Administered Tribal Areas said the landmine explosions were killing and injuring more and more residents but the relevant authorities remained unmoved.
They requested the court to direct the respondents, to remove landmines and highlight the affected areas as Red Zone.
The petitioners requested the court to order the government to pay compensation under the Shuhada Package to the legal heirs of landmine explosions and to the residents, who suffered injuries or whose houses were damaged.
They also sought orders for the police to register landmine blast cases in their daily diaries to check "discrimination" against the residents of the erstwhile Fata.
They claimed that during the last couple of years, around 178 landmine explosions had taken place in South Waziristan tribal district leaving 800 residents dead, 250 paralysed and 77 visually impaired.
The petitioners added that the residents also lost around 4,000 cattle heads to landmine blasts.
They said since May 28, 2021, three landmine explosions had left 15 children and three army personnel dead.