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In Pakistan, coming across bizarre news is not something out of the blue. From time to time, you’d come across news that lacks logic and makes you question, what were the people thinking? It was about time you had another addition to that list of ‘but why?’
Many of us have heard tales of how men were put behind bars or arrested for the heinous things they did, but have you ever come across a tree that suffered the same fate for its deeds? We’ve found out about one and it’s best if we share.
There’s a Banyan Tree in Pakistan which has been locked-up and chained massively for the last 100 years. There’s a whole story behind the incident that leads the tree to be chained and never to be opened again. The work of the poor tree is to save humans from the hot shade of the sun, but this particular tree ended up creating problems for itself.
The incident goes all the way back to the British government’s tenure in Pakistan. The region where the tree is situated is LandiKotal Cantt, FATA. The tree was specifically captured and chained in 1893 by a British Army Administrator named James Squid. It is said that under the influence of alcohol, General Squid thought that the tree was moving towards him — which was enough for him to take as a threat.
In order to show his power, General Squid thought of teaching the tree a lesson. He ordered his staff to capture the tree and to chain it permanently, placing it under arrest. However, there’s another theory to the incident altogether. People say that the General arrested this tree in order to show the locals that however tried to rebel would suffer the similar fate, but they have made a joke out of what actually happened.
As of today, the tree stands there with a board around its neck that says “I AM UNDER ARREST!” — with the famous story that a drunk General thought the tree was moving towards him. People from far away come to see the tree stand in its glory, covered up in chains, telling a story that took place 100 years ago.
