On 28 June news began circulating that two people (British Pakistanis) had been murdered in Chattroh: (see http://www.dadyal.com.pk/?p=1541, which includes a news report). According to the Urdu Daily Ausaf later that week, all the parties were closely related and, apparently, land disputes and the ‘argumentativeness’ (my translation of the word used by the paper) of the womenfolk were behind the murders.
I cannot comment on this particular case or the ‘argumentativeness’ of women, but the whole issue of land distribution in Mirpur does appear to be an explosive one. The district is a relatively peaceful place compared to the rest of Pakistan. Any murders are generally related to land or 'honour'.
Part of the problem is that the land laws there are so archaic that no one really understands them. Another issue is that the value of land has increased only relatively recently. Before that, land was essentially for farming. When elders died, there was no attempt by their heirs to update the records. You basically owned land by general agreement and acquiescence, rather than by strict legal title.
Even then, however, a small astute minority was able to play the system, in collaboration with venal land officials, and get documents altered and land boundaries expanded. These issues are only now coming to light, when the succeeding generation of British Pakistanis, are querying their land ownership before building new houses.
Constant talk of raising further the limit of the Mangla Reservoir, which will submerge more villages, adds to the demand for habitable land. I've already mentioned corrupt land officials, who are not averse to supplementing their salaries with handsome bribes. Miscreants and reprobates from villages across the Mirpur district are often close to land officials.
