Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains the province most affected by militancy. However, the Malakand Levies, the main security force in the district, still use ‘antique’ rifles left by the British Raj. The rifles were issued to them in 1895.
Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Nisar Muhammad submitted a resolution on Monday, seeking to improve the overall performance of the Malakand Levies in the Senate. He stated that “since its inception in 1895, the Malakand Levies have been using Markhor Rifles. At that time the number of levies officials was 192 and while the number has risen to 1,835 in 2014, antique rifles are still used to maintain law and order in the area that has seen a massive military operation in recent years and remains volatile.”
“The rifles are to be kept in the museum [rather] than to fight militants,” said the senator. He also revealed that the entire levies force only has 500 AK-47s. While majority of the force is either uneducated or under-qualified, in the absence of any other security apparatus they are solely responsible to conduct investigations and search for forensic evidence too.
The 24 check posts built by the British house the offices of the Malakand Levies to date. Each check post has two rooms and space for up to 50 men, Nisar Muhammad told the house.
