PESHAWAR: Members of the transgender community across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) have voiced outrage over a string of police-led evictions that have forced many from their homes in multiple districts, accusing authorities of discrimination and complicity in ongoing violence against them.
At a press conference at the Peshawar Press Club, community leaders including Farzana Riaz, President of the Transgender Association, and Mahi Gul, Vice President, condemned what they described as a campaign of intimidation and harassment. They alleged that police, local elders, and clerics in Swabi, Nowshera, Charsadda, Mingora, Haripur, and Buner were orchestrating forced evictions and extortion against transgender residents.
Farzana Riaz said that many transgender individuals have been targeted by gangs involved in kidnapping and extortion, often operating under police protection. “We are not asking for sympathy — we are asking for our constitutional right to live with dignity,” she asserted, calling out law enforcement for ignoring repeated appeals for justice.
Reports indicate that in some districts, transgender persons were issued 15-day eviction notices, while others were assaulted or threatened before being removed from their homes. Activists claim these operations are being conducted under the guise of “moral policing,” leaving hundreds displaced.
Despite court intervention, the harassment continues. The Peshawar High Court recently directed the provincial Inspector General of Police and the city police officer to halt forced evictions and submit an explanation by November 4, but community members say on-ground enforcement remains weak.
“The same authorities who should protect us are the ones driving us out,” said Mahi Gul, lamenting that the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018, is being openly violated. She also criticized the government for failing to implement promised job quotas, healthcare facilities, and safety mechanisms for transgender citizens.
As police actions intensify, activists warn that KP’s transgender community is being pushed to the margins — stripped of homes, livelihoods, and legal protection. Despite growing national awareness of transgender rights, they continue to battle systemic prejudice in silence.
This story has been reported by PakTribune. All rights reserved.