Peshawar police ban private jirgas in hotels and marriage halls

Peshawar police have banned private jirgas across the city and warned hotels, marriage halls and other commercial venues that they will be sealed if they allow such gatherings on their premises.

Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Mian Saeed said private jirgas would not be tolerated and that organisers and the owners or managers of the venues would both face legal action, ARY News and Minute Mirror reported. The CCPO said jirgas held in the city often involved the display of weapons, which raised security concerns.

Police said the order followed a firing incident at a private jirga held at a hotel a few days ago in which two people were killed.

Dawn reported that the decision came after complaints and several incidents at private jirgas, and that the police cited gun culture, clashes and hefty charges as the reasons behind the instructions.

Under the policy, action will be taken against the organisers of such meetings and against the hotels and marriage halls that provide the venue, police officials said. The officials said the move was meant to prevent further violent incidents and keep order in the city.

The jirga is a traditional dispute-resolution mechanism in which tribal elders and community leaders settle civil, criminal and communal disputes by consensus. Some jirga rulings have drawn criticism for conflicting with the law and individual rights.

ARY News reported separately that police in Peshawar's Badaber area arrested three suspects on 25 June 2026 in an alleged gang rape case, along with several members of a local jirga who had taken part in settling the matter. According to police, the jirga had decided that one of the accused would marry the victim and that compensation would be paid to her father. A dispute over the payment led the victim's father to go to the police, an FIR was registered and the arrests followed. Police said the initial investigation showed prior contact between the suspects and the victim.