KOHAT: The reconciliatory committees formed at the police station level have failed to provide relief to the victims.

Formed a decade ago, these committees were to settle minor disputes out of court to decrease burden of cases on the latter. However, most of these committees comprised influential people, who instead of eliminating bribery and corruption, promoted the menace.

Moreover, the utility of the committees was marred by the fact that they were unsuitable in the settled areas as they were like jirgas which functioned in Fata and the frontier regions.

Abdur Rauf, a prominent lawyer, told Dawn that the reconciliatory committees were an interference into the courts` jurisdiction as the bodies were tasked to solve issues, which no other forum otherthancourtscouldsolve.

Other legal experts said the committee members got their favourites freed at the police stations and took bribe to settle disputes thus, negating the very purpose for which they were set up.

`In many cases the police freed the criminals during night to sleep at home and then return to the police station next day. Often criminals were provided fan and bed in the courtyard of police stations because the lockups gave foul smell and abounded with mosquitoes.

The people demanded dissolution of the committees as they said jirga like organisations were illegal in settled areas and were stuffed with corrupt people.

ACCIDENT: One passenger was killed and six were seriously injured in a headon collision between a car and passenger van on Rawalpindi road here on Wednesday.

The Kohat bound Toyota Hiace (LES-3587) collided with car (HZ-2995) near Gumbat, injuring eight people, who were taken to KDA divisional headquarters hospital for treatment.

One of the injured, Abdullah of Babri Banda town, later died in the hospital.Correspondent