Shahzad Ahmad Shahzad
BOONI: A video of an elderly woman from the Jinali Koch area of Upper Chitral has gone viral on social media, triggering widespread public reaction.
In the video, the woman accuses the district administration and police of forcibly entering her home at night and violating the sanctity of her privacy and household.
According to the head of the affected family, Sher Faraz, his family has been living at the current location for the past two years after their previous house was completely destroyed due to river erosion. He claims that a government building being constructed directly in front of their current home is compromising their family’s privacy, especially for the women.
\”We are only seeking to protect our dignity and privacy,\” he told the media.
In contrast, the district administration maintains that the land on which the house is built is government property, and that their recent action was limited to removing an illegal boundary wall constructed on public land.
\”We only attempted to remove the encroachment; we did not enter the house nor violate its sanctity,\” a spokesperson explained.
The sensitive nature of the incident and the fact that the action was taken at night has raised questions among civil society and local elders.
They argue that if this was indeed a case of illegal construction, then the proper procedure would have been to issue a notice and take action during daylight hours, thereby avoiding conflict and public outrage.
This incident once again highlights the need for transparent and sensitive enforcement of the law, so that citizens’ fundamental rights are not violated and the authority of the state is maintained.