Jirgas: The parallel tribal courts

Notwithstanding the disapproval by the superior courts displayed from time to time, a parallel system of justice called ‘Jirga’ dating back to centuries has persistently survived in our tribal society.

The tribal chiefs intercede in a festering conflict within their own tribe or between two different tribes purportedly with a view to restoring peace. The tribal jury considers the root cause of the dispute; the losses in terms of life and property of warring parties; determines the culpability and imposes fines. The tribal Jirga has no sanction of law nor is it prevailing in any modern country with some modicum of criminal justice system and rule of law.

The violent conflicts are normally triggered by disputes over land, matrimonial match, and elopement of pairs, honour killing and revengeful retaliation. Sometimes, the intense pressure of the tribal notables for reconciliation suppresses the enmity between the parties. But the embers of hostility keep smouldering under the surface, and re-erupt after years consuming more lives. In most cases, however, the parties honour the reconciliation because of the fear of the Sardars’ backlash or genuine concerns for the safety of their younger generation.

Some verdicts pronounced by tribal Jirgas, more often than not, result in life-long miseries for a party when minor girls are handed over in retributive justice to the supposedly aggrieved party. In the recent past, the so-called tribal juries imposed equally vulgar humiliations on the aggressors that included forced marriages, gang rape and physical dishonour of women of the party found guilty in cases of elopement of a pair, fornication and rape. Such scandalous cases were reported in the national media that brought bad name to the country.

The Jirga system has once again caught the attention of the conscious sons and daughters of Sindh. The tragic murder of a young man, Professor Dr. Muhammad Ajmal Savand by the people of the Sundrani tribe in Kashmore a year or so ago shocked the entire Sindh. Every eye was tear-soaked to know of the dastardly murder of Ajmal revengeful retaliation of the murder of Sundrani men committed by the people of Savand tribe in which he or any immediate member of his family had no role at all. Dr. Ajmal was a brilliant and hardworking student. He completed his higher studies in Pakistan and went to France for a PhD in Artificial Intelligence. Keeping in view his brilliant academic record and the doctoral thesis, the French Universities offered him highly paid jobs in his professional field.

Dr. Ajmal was a true and committed Sindhi nationalist. The temptations of high salary and the rich and colourful life of Paris could not overcome his spirit to serve his nation. He returned to Pakistan. He started teaching in the Institute of Business Administration Sukkur close to his native town, Kashmore.

His friends say he chose IBA Sukkur to have maximum number of students in technical education particularly in his field from the rural Sindh. He was doing very well, and within no time proved himself to be a precious asset to IBA Sukkur and to Sindh. He was admired alike by acquaintances, friends and senior and junior colleagues for his cosmopolitanism, determination, hard work and commitment to his profession.

Sons of the calibre of Dr. Ajmal are rarely born. The tragic murder of such gem of a person and a budding scholar and academic giant shocked the entire Sindh which was up in protest demanding the arrest and prosecution of his killers for an exemplary punishment under the law of the country. The perpetrators of the dastardly crime must have been arrested and prosecuted in courts. But the way our criminal judicial system sluggishly works being hostage to eye witnesses, advocates, court clerks and long interregnums in hearings is not only a great discouragement to the petitioners, it provides an opportunity to the demi-gods of the tribal system to intervene by creating the frightful spectre of further bloodletting keeping in view the weak and dismaying role of the policing.

This is what happened in the case of Dr. Ajmal too. His family was pressurized for out of court reconciliation -as the court case was probably heading towards logical conclusion carrying harsh punishments for the perpetrators of the crime. The powerful Sardars of Sundranis, Bijranis, Mahers and the senior leaders of the ruling Pakistan People’s party all joined hands together to persuade Dr. Ajmal’s family for reconciliation through Jirga. His family succumbed to this pressure and opted for the settlement of the issue out of the court.

Hence, the date of the grand Jirga was fixed and Sardars invited to assemble at the residence of Sardar Ali Gohar Maher, MNA of Pakistan People’s Party.

In the grand assemblage of the demi-gods, one can regretfully notice the presence of Syed Khurshid Ali Shah, Shabbir Bijrani and Ghaus Bakhsh Maher and some other tribal chiefs. What was the settlement? Fines of over Rs.30million were imposed each on the two warring groups for the loss of 21 lives and property in this long tribal warfare.

The loss of lives was, more or less, even between the groups. Shockingly, the value of the life of Dr. Ajmal was determined by these half-lettered Sardars at Rs.10million along with a separate amount of Rs.1.3million as price of his car, laptop, and cell phone. Under the persuasion of the Sardars, the fines against each other were waived off by the reconciling parties.

Did Dr. Ajmal return to his native land to fall victim of tribal warfare? Do these Sardars have an idea of the worth of a man of his qualifications and calibre for his land and society? No, they don’t have. Like the murder of Nazim Jokhio and Fatima Fariro and many others, the tragic murder of Dr. Ajmal Savand has also been settled by the small gods on this earth sending a loud message to the poor people of Sindh – ‘Beware; here we are as masters of your life and property; we are law, court and judge unto ourselves’. This is the tragedy that we have been putting up with this oppressive tribal society for the last 76 years. About two centuries ago, all these Sardars were allotted lands and pecuniary perks by the British India for their services to the Empire. The Britishers left the Sub-continent to the charge of the demi-gods created by them. Jawaharlal Nehru got rid of them by the exhaustive redistribution of lands in the early 1950s.

The judicial prosecution and justice system have almost crumbled. The police is politicized. The district officers owe their field and lucrative postings to tribal chiefs who overwhelmingly occupy the provincial and national legislatures and cabinets.   Unless the people are freed from the oppressive tribal strangle through the redistribution of lands, education, overhauling reforms in the judicial and prosecution systems, criminal law, police culture, the common populace would continue to remain irrelevant putting up with this inhuman socio-economic and political asphyxia and mourn the tragic deaths of the people of the worth of Dr. Ajmal Savand.

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