Hazara Province Movement: Tehreek e Suba Hazara
At least eight people were killed and over 200 injured when dozens of people protesting against the NWFP renaming clashed with police in Abbottabad city.
As many as seven persons were killed while over 200 injured during the ongoing public-police clashes as the protesters turned violent during their demonstrations against the renaming of NWFP as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in favour of the creation of Hazara Province in Abbottabad, Hazara on Monday, April 12, 2010.
The enraged protesters torched two police cars and a police station.
Despite the imposition of section 144, the protesters gathered at Fawara Chowk and chanted slogans against the government and demanded a province status for Hazara Division.
The police resorted to fire and baton-charged the protesters and also teargas shelling. Resultantly, seven persons were killed while over 100 including former deputy speaker national assembly Sardar Yaqoob.
Meanwhile, in Haripur, the demonstrators blocked Shahra-e-Resham, while in Mansehra, a district of Hazara, the students’ organization also staged protest against the killing of peaceful protesters of Abbottabad and blocked the Shahra-e-Resham. The students Action Committee of Gharhi Habibullah and Balakot also staged protest against the renaming of NWFP and in favour of Hazara Province and they also blocked the Shahra-e-Kashmir.
“As the killing of seven peaceful protesters of Hazara Province Movement by the Pukhtoon Police force deployed by the NWFP government from the Pukhtoon parts NWFP on Monday, we will start protest with loaded to defend ourself” said Naseer Khan Spokesman of Hazara Action Committee.
It is pertinent to mentioned here that the NWFP government intentionally involved turning the peaceful demonstration into blood shad demonstration as they deployed the police force belonging to Pukhtoon area including Murdan, Charsada and Peshawar. At the time when people of Hazara had already been angry with Pukhtoons due to purposing the ethnic name of NWFP, the deployment of Pukhtoon areas police was not a responsible decision.
