Farmers and workers of various political parties held a protest demonstration against arrest of tenants and forcefully evicting hundreds of farmers from their houses at the behest of land owners in parts of Charsadda district. The demonstration was arranged by Mazdoor Kisan Party (MKP) outside Peshawar Press Club which was led by the leaders of different parties.
Holding banners and placards inscribed with their demands, the protestors urged the provincial government to withdraw the amendments in the state acquisition and tenancy (amended) Act, 2014 to enable the farmers return their homes and resume routine work for earning their livelihood.
Speaking on the occasion MKP chairman Afzal Khamoosh, secretary information Shakeel Waheedullah Khan and other local leaders voiced concerns over eviction and arrest of tenants and farmers in different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under State Acquisition and Tenancy (Amendment) Act, 2014 and described it as sheer injustice with poor farmers.
They said that a number of farmers and political activists had been arrested for the only fault that they had protested against the forced eviction of the farmers. The speakers demanded of the government to release the detained peasants and political activists at the earliest.
He said that the growers were forcibly evicted following implementation of the relevant law during the previous provincial government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. He said earlier courts had decided the cases regarding tenants in light of an agreement between peasants and landowners, signed back in 1950.
Khamoosh said that the new tenancy law was passed by the previous provincial assembly in haste and without consent of the relevant stakeholders. He said that the law was misused by land owners. He said that a large number of tenants and agriculture workers were evicted in different parts of the province and thus making lives of the people miserable.
He also condemned arrest of some of the political activists and said that police action against the farmers might create law and order situation. He demanded immediate halt to police action against the tenants.
The MKP chief demanded of Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief Minister Mehmood Khan to issue order for withdrawal of the cases against the farmers and other political workers forthwith to avert any untoward incident in the area.
"We will launch a campaign by setting up protest camps in all major cities of the country and also convene an All-Parties Conference if the government did not stop action against poor farmers," Shakeel warned.
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