Mastuj, July 23, 2026: The historic long march from Broghil to Booni organized by Tehreek Mastuj-Broghil Road, which drew thousands of participants, was called off in Mastuj on Thursday afternoon on an assurance that the construction on the long-awaited Mastuj-Broghil Road would begin in a month.
The decision followed talks between the movement’s leaders and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker Suriya Bibi, the PTI MPA elected from the constituency, who arrived in the area to hold talks with the protesters.
Sources told ChitraToday that Suriya Bibi assured the Tehreek leaders on a stamp paper, with PTI Upper Chitral President Sikendarul Mulk as a guarantor, that work on the about 150km road would be formally started on Aug 23, 2026.
The deputy speaker said she was prepared to instantly initiate work on the road through a contractor on her own responsibility, even though the formal commencement of the project required the completion of legal and administrative procedures, including approval of funds and the tendering process.
She promised that she would make all-out efforts to complete the required formalities within a month so that construction work could officially begin on the road on August 23, 2026.
As an interim measure, work on 20 kilometres portion of the road to make it blacktop (asphalt) will begin immediately.
Moreover, all recommendations and related records submitted for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) will be handed over to the representatives of the Tehreek.
Following the assurance, the leadership of Tehreek Mastuj-Broghil Road announced the temporary suspension of the long march.
However, the decision drew mixed reactions from the participants. Many expressed disappointment, describing the assurance as “another lollipop” and questioning why the movement was ended on what they viewed as a political commitment.
Several participants said a similar assurance had previously been offered by Suriya Bibi but was rejected by the movement’s leadership at the time. They argued that after mobilizing thousands of people from Broghil to Mastuj, ending the protest on what they considered the same promise had left many supporters dissatisfied.
They added that even launching work on a project does not guarantee timley completion and release of funds as several mega road projects have remained stalled even completion of almost 50pc of work.
They said the people of Yarkhun had come out in a large number and endured the long march for many days and were determined to take the long march to its logical conclusion.
They added that the PTI had won both the NA and PA seats due to the support of the people of Yarkhun but the provincial government despite making promises last year to start work first on 20km long stretch of the Yarkhun road failed to allocate funds for it in the budget.
The protesters were of the view that they had wanted to continue the long march with a hope that the deputy speaker would arrange the visit of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to Upper Chitral to announce the construction of the road.
However, the Tehreek leaders, mostly PTI supporters, fell prey to party politics and decided to end the long march so abruptly only on the assurance of the deputy speaker when more people were ready to join and support the Tehreek.
Related:
Court Orders Release of Funds for Broghil Road Project
High Court Hearing Highlights Funding Issues for Chitral Roads
