NRM law for Khyber Pokhtoonkhwa -letter

No Rallies in Markets (NRM) should be order of day in Khyber Pokhtoonkhwa. Every one knows that the tragic incident of suicide bombing in a political rally in Qisa Khwani Bazaar Peshawar on April 19 took 23 precious lives and injured another 65. Similar incident had taken place in Timergara lower Dir few days ago.

 

This very wrong, unlawful, unjust and unethical trend that party in power uses Markets for rallies. In reaction apposition parties also hold similar rallies and processions in Markets and Bazaars. Law enforcement agencies have no power to prevent the ruling parties from such heinous crime and when it comes to opposition, it blames the ruling party for holding unlawful rallies in busy markets.

 

The problem with our political leadership is very simple. Political parties have lost the confidence of the masses. They cannot gather few people in an open area. Therefore they hold their rallies in busy markets and Bazaars to utilize ready-made gathering of people for their political designs. It is high time that our political parties reach consensus on sparing markets and holding their rallies in open areas. If such untoward incident occurs in another rally in a market, the political party should bear equal responsibility as the terrorist groups who claim to be responsible for such incidents.

Bashir Hussain Azad,
Chitral.
21 April, 10.