UPPER DIR: The Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) Headquarters Dir has launched a major operation against illegal signboards and advertising flexes on the directives of Deputy Commissioner Upper Dir Malik Dilnawaz Khan Wazir.
During the operation, TMA staff removed development project boards installed in various localities of Dir city, including Panah Kot and Kotkay, which displayed the names and pictures of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders alongside details of development schemes initiated during the party’s previous government.
According to sources, the operation was conducted under the supervision of the Tehsil Municipal Officer (TMO). Dozens of boards installed along roadsides were removed.
A TMA official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the operation was not limited to PTI-related boards. He said illegal advertising flexes, banners and posters belonging to private companies and individuals had also been removed from government electric poles, streetlights and other public properties.
The official added that the confiscated material had been taken into state custody under the administration’s policy. He said no one would be allowed to deface the city’s appearance through unauthorised advertisements.
PTI Condemns Removal of Development Boards
PTI’s local leadership strongly condemned the operation, describing the removal of development project boards as cruel, unjust and politically motivated.
A PTI worker said the removal of the boards would not diminish public support for the party’s founder, Imran Khan.
Jamaat-e-Islami Recalls Past Actions
Meanwhile, workers of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) recalled similar actions during PTI’s tenure, claiming that the name of former JI MPA Maulana Farid Khan had been removed from Bab-e-Kumrat, while the name of former District Nazim Sahibzada Fasihullah had been taken off the Dir City Welcome Board.
A JI activist described the current situation as Makafat-e-Amal—a reckoning for past actions—linking the removal of PTI boards to the imposition of Governor’s Rule in the province.
The operation has sparked a political debate in the area, with the administration presenting it as an enforcement measure against illegal advertising and PTI representatives criticising the removal of development boards.