The Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) government has decided to boycott Shandur polo festival due to territorial dispute with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) government.
After failing to reach a consensus with the KPK government to jointly organise the event, the GB government also decided to organise separately a three-day Shandur polo festival
The Shandur festival is scheduled to start from July 22.
In the previous year the GB government also boycotted the event last year and in 2011 over the KPK government of monopolising the sport.
To resolve the issue a meeting was held in Islamabad between GB and KPK representatives to work out an amicable solution to organise the festival, but the dialogue ended without any result as none of the participants was ready to take a step back from their stated position.
Lawmaker Fida Khan talking to media persons after the meeting,said on Saturday the GB government failed to reach consensus with the KPK government to organise the event jointly.
Responding to a question regarding GB’s right over Shandur territory, he said Shandur was a part of GB, but KPK administration had illegally and unconstitutionally occupied it.
“KP administration is deliberately escalating tension by illegally occupying the territory,” he said, adding if the tension continued, both sides would suffer.
Regretting stern stance of Chitral administration on hosting rights of the event, Fida Khan said: “The GB government had decided to boycott the event when Chitral administration refused to host the event on equal basis.”
