Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government Sets Bounties On Most Wanted Terrorists Amid Controversy

(MENAFN- Tribal News Network) The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has allocated a bounty of 3.31 billion rupees for the capture of 2,251 most-wanted terrorists in the province.

Since 2019, the Interior Department has set this price for the heads of 2,251 most-wanted individuals across 28 districts. More than 1,200 terrorists have been killed, and 975 have been arrested so far.

According to Home Department documents, a list of 532 most-wanted terrorists was compiled in 2019, with a bounty of 79.45 million rupees. In 2020, 197 terrorists were added to the list, with a bounty set at 832.4 million rupees.

In 2021, 168 terrorists were declared most wanted with a bounty of 401.7 million rupees. In 2022, the bounty for 429 terrorists was set at 794.2 million rupees. For 2023, the bounty for 294 terrorists was fixed at 467.3 million rupees. The Home Department rejected a proposal by CTD Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to set a bounty for 11 terrorists this year, stating that their names were already on the lists.

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The CTD Khyber Pakhtunkhwa report mentioned that Saleem Rabbani of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, with a bounty of 10 million rupees, was killed in Swat district. Extremist Mohsin Qadir, worth 7 million rupees, and Abbas Khan, worth 5 million rupees, were killed in Mardan district.

Four extremists in North Waziristan-Hafiz Rehmat, Janan, Qadramand alias Tabsum, and Rehmatullah-were also killed, each with a bounty of 4 million rupees. Qamar Zaman was killed in Dera Ismail Khan, with a bounty of 1 million rupees. The slain militants were wanted for targeting political figures, extortion, and bombings.

Interior Department sources revealed that CTD Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had mistakenly included the same terrorist's picture and name multiple times on the wanted list. Some government employees and social workers were also erroneously added. Following a court order, these names were removed from the list.

In March, the Interior Department ordered the removal of six names from the state's wanted list.

The report also referenced Nuristan province in Afghanistan, noting that 25 wanted individuals to have permanent addresses there but frequently cross into the Chitral district.

The list includes terrorists from 28 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and two districts of Punjab. Notably, Peshawar has 313 terrorists on the list; Swat has 142, Buner 159, North Waziristan 154, Bannu 88, Lakki Marwat 93, Mardan 112, Swabi 112, and others from various districts.

The National Counter Terrorism Authority of Pakistan (Necta) report highlights that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the most terrorism-affected province, while Punjab has the highest number of individuals linked to banned organizations-1,405 in total. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has 529, and Sindh has 208.

Necta's report lists 1,405 individuals from 31 districts of Punjab associated with banned organizations, including 77 from Bhakkar, 33 from Pakpattan, 136 from Jhang, and others from various districts.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 529 people from 27 districts are on the list, including 37 from Swabi, 16 from Kohat, 56 from Peshawar, and others from various districts.

In Sindh, 208 individuals from 19 districts, including 133 from Karachi, are listed. Necta did not release a list for Balochistan province.

Pakistan Muslim League-N MPA Rashad Khan accused the CTD of arresting innocent people instead of terrorists, alleging that some officials within the department take bribes to release them. He claimed most detainees are laborers and shopkeepers, kept incommunicado for days, with their families misled about their whereabouts.

In response, Additional Inspector General CTD Shaukat Abbas dismissed the allegations as baseless and lacking evidence.

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