Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions (Safron), Sajid Hussain Turi on Saturday asked the government to recover 20 abducted tribesmen within 24 hours.
Speaking at a news conference here at the National Press Club, Sajid Turi, who is Member National Assembly from Kurram Agency, said that if the abducted tribesmen were not recovered in given time, Turi tribe will itself launch operation in the areas where some armed persons abducted over 40 passengers belonging to Turi tribes on their way to Parachinar from Peshawar, the headquarters of Kurram Agency.
Some armed persons on Friday attacked passenger vehicles killing at least 8 people and wounding others besides kidnapping 26 others all belonging to Turi tribe. The MNA held the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and local administration responsible for the incident saying that the government from the top to the bottom was not co-operating to help restore peace to the restive Kurram Agency. He further alleged that the government was deliberately neglecting restoration of peace in Kurram Agency.
"I have discussed the situation with the President, Prime Minister and also wrote a letter to Army Chief to take action against the handful militants but they are paying no heeds to the people's representatives", he maintained and cautioned that it will have very negative impact if immediate steps were not taken for the security of the passengers in Thall-Parachinar road.
To help restore peace in the restive Kurram Agency, he said a grand jirga comprising elders from all tribes of the various tribal areas brokered peace accord in Murree on October 15, 2008 and bonds of Rs 20 million were signed by the warring tribes of Kurram Agency. "But the accord could not be implemented due to least attention of the government after passage of two years", he maintained.