PESHAWAR: The elders of Utmankhel tribe from Mohmand Agency have blamed political administration for supporting mine grabbers in the area and threatened to launch a protest movement if action is not taken against the contractor, who has allegedly occupied their gemstone mines.

Addressing a news conference at Peshawar Press Club on Saturday, Utmankhel elder Siyar Khan said that owners had allowed contractor Siraj Khan to excavate gemstone from a 70-yard piece of land but he occupied up to 300 acres hill of the precious stones.He demanded of President Mamnoon Hussain, Chief of Army Staff Gen Javed Qamar Bajwa, and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to take notice of the illegal occupation of the hill to avert any untoward incident in the militancy-hit tribal region.

Flanked by a group of tribal elders, Mr Khan alleged that excavation of precious nephrite jade continued without permission of the owners because the local political administration and of ficials of mine and mineral development department were supporting the contractor.

He said that mines were sole source of income of the local people but they were deprived of the wealth in connivance with political administration.

`We have already contacted the officials of mines and mineral department to retrieve the grabbed area but to no avail,` he added.

The elder said that the contractor had promised during a jirga to confine excavation to the area he possessed legally.He said that actual owners of the mines were Ajeer Khan and others, who had signed a separate agreement with another contractor Haji Tehmash Khan on behalf of the tribe but the agreement could not be materialised as Siraj Khan still occupied the entire area illegally.

Mr Khan alleged that the contractor was supported by political administration and officials of mine and mineral development department as they were pressurising the elders to withdraw their complaints otherwise they would have to face dire consequences.

The elder said that about 300 tribal people had requested the contractor to stop the illegal excavation but his supporters opened fire on them and injured many of them.

The political administration, he said, sent innocent people behind bars in the case to pressurise the owners of the mines.

`We held a protest demonstration outside office of political agent but he imposed a fine of Rs2 million on us under FCR,` said Mr Khan.