BANNU: The Awami National Party (ANP) in Bannu has strongly condemned efforts to return merged districts to federal control (reverse FATA reforms), calling it an attack on provincial autonomy under Pakistan’s 18th Amendment. In a district-wide meeting chaired by President Naz Ali Wazir, party leaders warned that the move aims to seize valuable minerals, oil, and gas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s tribal regions.
Former Senator Haji Baz Muhammad Khan and other speakers accused state institutions and the federal government of “dangerous conspiracies against Pashtuns,” claiming awareness campaigns about resource rights have “panicked” authorities. They criticized the 27th Amendment as an attempt to strip powers granted to provinces, warning it would “bind Pashtuns in chains of slavery.”
The meeting also expressed concern over tensions in North Waziristan, pledging solidarity against military operations. Attendees approved a systematic movement—starting at the tehsil level—to resist reverting merged districts to federal authority. Committees will mobilize public opposition to resource seizures and restored FATA-era laws. ANP leaders vowed: “As long as a single Pashtun lives, we will defend our land and rights
.”
