'Tribal rivalry': 8-year-old girl dies after house catches fire in Kohistan

MANSEHRA: An eight-year-old girl was burnt to death when the house she was in caught fire in Palas tehsil of Lower Kohistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. 

The affected family has nominated Afzal Kohistan, their opponent in the Kohistan video scandal, in the FIR registered over the incident.

According to Palas SHO Muhammad Imtiaz, Muhammad Sharif, a resident of Gadaar, has told the police that Afzal along with his accomplices set on fire their three houses in which three children were burnt alive. However, the police found the body of only one child, eight-year-old Haseena, and sent it to Battagram district hospital for a post-mortem.

Rural Center Patan's Dr Muhammad Geer told Geo News the initial report suggests the girl died due of burn injuries, but a final decision would be reached after the internal report is obtained. On the other hand, search for the other bodies is under way.

The complainant — uncle of the two women seen in the 2012 'scandal' video and cousin of the deceased girl — has registered the case against Afzal, his two brothers and three relatives, said the police.

However, Afzal spoke to Geo News from an unknown location, saying the video scandal case was in the Supreme Court and a decision over it would be announced soon. Under such circumstances, Afzal added, he cannot make a move that would ruin his efforts of five years. He maintained the complainant's side put their own houses on fire and are blaming Afzal and his family to trap them. Therefore, Afzal requested the government for protection, saying if he would go to Kohistan in this case, his opponents would kill him.

Between the tribes

The issue started when a video surfaced in which some young men and women — of two different tribes — were seen dancing and singing. After the video came to the fore in 2012, a jirga ordered their killing as such mingling between opposite genders was against local tribal customs.

Later, in May 2012, Afzal, told the media his brothers were killed in 2013.

The then chief justice of the Supreme Court, Iftikhar Chaudhry, took suo motu notice of the case. Subsequently, a commission was formed to probe the case, a report of which stated there was no proof of the women being killed.

But Afzal stood by his statement and is awaiting a verdict to be announced in his favour.