While attending the
Gomal University, Mohsin Dawar was the president of the Pashtun Students Federation (PSF), an allied student wing of the
Awami National Party (ANP). Dawar also co-founded the ANP's youth wing, the
National Youth Organisation (NYO). In the wake of
Operation Zarb-e-Azb by the
Pakistan Armed Forces, during which many inhabitants of
North Waziristan were
forced to flee their homes in June 2014 to settle at
IDP camps in
Bannu and other districts, Dawar campaigned for the return of the refugees to their homes. He led the ANP's
humanitarian efforts for the displaced persons, which included raising funds, distributing rations and establishing a school. He also highlighted a number of other issues faced by the returnees in his speeches and writings, such as the army's demolition of shops in his hometown,
Miramshah. In his opinion article for
Al Jazeera in March 2021, Dawar reiterated that although "the state of Pakistan claims it has been successful in its military operations, the region remains volatile as groups allied with the
Taliban continue to not only exist and operate in these areas within Pakistan, but also carry out operations like before across the border in Afghanistan." Dawar's open
criticism of the Pakistan Armed Forces, however, irritated ANP leaders, especially those who were looking to avoid confrontation with the
military establishment. The ANP leaders were also annoyed when Dawar became one of the founding leaders of the
Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) in February 2018. In spite of receiving no show-cause notice in advance or an opportunity to defend himself, Dawar's membership was suspended from the ANP on 20 March 2018 by the party's president,
Asfandyar Wali Khan.
National Assembly and NDM Dawar was elected to the
National Assembly of Pakistan as an independent candidate from
NA-48 (Tribal Area-IX) in the
2018 general election. He received 16,526 votes, defeating Mufti Misbahudin of the
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) and Aurangzeb Khan of the
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). On 1 September 2021, Dawar founded a political party,
National Democratic Movement (NDM). Some analysts claimed that the NDM would cause a set back for the PTM, a non-parliamentary political movement, and curtail its influence. However, Dawar insisted that the NDM would support the PTM. "The PTM is a joint movement and we remained part of it. I don’t think that the NDM will weaken the PTM," he said. Several other leaders who joined the NDM, including
Jamila Gilani,
Bushra Gohar,
Afrasiab Khattak and
Abdullah Nangyal, were also prominent activists in the PTM. From 11 to 14 March 2022, he was part of the
Pashtun National Jirga, which was held in
Bannu to discuss the critical issues faced by the Pashtuns in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Detentions On 30 November 2018, Dawar and
Ali Wazir, his fellow parliamentarian and PTM leader, were traveling to
Dubai,
UAE to attend a Pashtun cultural event, but they were offloaded from their flight at
Bacha Khan International Airport,
Peshawar. The
Federal Investigation Agency kept Dawar and Wazir in custody for three days. Dawar demanded action against the personnel who arrested them without getting prior permission from the
Speaker of the National Assembly. On 30 May 2019, Dawar handed himself over to the police in
Bannu after four days of hiding following the
Kharqamar incident. Ali Wazir had already been arrested by the military in Kharqamar, North Waziristan, on 26 May. After almost four months in jail, Dawar and Wazir were released on bail on 21 September 2019. On 14 October 2020, the government withdrew the Kharqamar case against PTM, and Dawar and Wazir were acquitted of the charges against them. On 28 January 2020, Dawar and 28 other protesters, including
Ismat Shahjahan and
Ammar Rashid of the
Awami Workers Party (AWP), were arrested by the police outside the
National Press Club in
Islamabad, where they had gathered to stage a protest against the arrest of PTM chairman
Manzoor Pashteen, who had been arrested in
Peshawar a day earlier on allegations of sedition. Video footage from the protest showed Dawar was dragged by the police and detained in a police vehicle. Dawar and Ismat Shahjahan were released on 29 January but Ammar Rashid and 22 others were sent to jail on sedition charges; all charges were dropped against them on 17 February. Manzoor Pashteen was also released from jail on 25 February. On 4 September 2020, Dawar was taken into custody at
Quetta International Airport and barred from participating in political activities in
Quetta. Dawar said the airport authorities informed him that he and Ali Wazir were banned from entering
Balochistan for another 90 days. On 24 October 2020, he was again arrested at the airport to stop him from attending a
Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) rally in Quetta.
Akhtar Mengal, the president of the
Balochistan National Party (Mengal), and
Maryam Nawaz, a leader of the
Pakistan Muslim League (N), condemned Dawar's arrest. On 28 March 2021, the police arrested Dawar in
Karak and Manzoor Pashteen in
Kohat to prevent both of them from travelling to Bannu to join and lead the
Janikhel protest march. The protest was called off on 29 March after an agreement was signed between the protesters and
Mahmood Khan, the
Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, following which Dawar and Pashteen were released.
2024 assassination attempt On 10 February 2024, Dawar and his supporters faced a tragic incident in
Miramshah,
North Waziristan, during their protest against the delay in the announcement of election results from the
NA-40 North Waziristan constituency in the
2024 Pakistani general election. As they gathered to express their grievances, the police opened fire on them. Dawar survived but sustained injuries, while three protesters were killed and several others were wounded. This event spurred a significant outcry among the local community and Dawar's supporters, leading to a large-scale rally in North Waziristan. The participants, including the NDM party and members of the Darpa Khel clan, strongly condemned the police action and demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident, alongside the arrest and prosecution of those responsible. ==See also==