The Express Tribune

The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) rejected the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) merger with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and demanded that the Frontier Crime Regulations be replaced with Islamic Sharia.This was announced by the JUI-F in a public gathering on Sunday which was addressed by the JUI-F Fata Amir Mufti Abdul Shakor, the party’s general secretary for the Fata chapter Mufti Ijaz Shenwari and other leaders.Mufti Abdul Shakor said that the JUI-F never opposes any reforms in Fata, but it will not accept a merger of the tribal area with K-P. He instead demanded that Fata should be made into a separate province.The JUI-F leader said that if anyone claimed that having a separate province will weaken the Pakhtuns, then they are misleading them. He said that a separate province will increase the Pakhtun representation in the Senate. He also said that a separate province will allow Fata to get a proper share in the National Finance Commission (NFC) awards, which will bring prosperity and development in the tribal area.Mufti Shinwari, while talking to The Express Tribune, claimed that the government has agreed with the JUI-F that in the first phase some administrative and judicial reforms will be introduced in Fata to bring it into mainstream, instead of merging it with K-P.He added that after five years of the reforms they will decide whether Fata should be merged with K-P or be made into a separate province.The ruling PML-N’s K-P chapter is set to hold a public gathering in Peshawar on Tuesday to show support to the Fata merger.The PML-N has also invited its MNAs from Fata Shahab ud Din Khan, Muhammad Nazir and Ghalib Khan as well. The rally will also be addressed by the Prime Minister’s Adviser Amir Muqam.On the other hand, the K-P government has started preparing for the possible merger of Fata with K-P.K-P Senior Minister Sikandar Khan Sherpao, while talking to The Express Tribune, said that the provincial government has formed a committee to work out plans in case the merger takes place. He added that the committee will also shape a strategy regarding development in the tribal areas.Published in, January 9, 2017.