Inland fishing is common in Pakistan and is a vital component of human diet, source of food security, livelihoods and recreation. Despite being so much important, the freshwater fisheries have not yet been given proper attention in Pakistan. The fish stock in the rivers is continuously on the decline and destructive fishing practices on the increase, leading to serious decline of fishes in the inland rivers of the study area. The monetary losses for the neighboring communities and society resulting from such damage are more than the direct individual benefits made by the users of these destructive methods. Fishermen and people residing near water bodies are the main actors in fishery related issues and their knowledge and perceptions about destructive fishing practices and conservation of fishery resources are valuable. Therefore, this study was conducted in district Charsadda Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan to pinpoint the major socioeconomic drivers of destructive fishing practices, and its impact on fishermen livelihoods and fish consumption. Data was collected through a household survey from 286 households from nine fishermen concentrated villages of district Charsadda, using two stage cluster sampling method. The households were divided into three groups (Type I, Type II and Type III) in order to distinguish between households based on different characteristics. The fisher‘s socio-economic characteristics were analyzed through simple statistics such as frequencies, percentages, averages and standard deviations. Stepwise multiple linear regression models were used to identify the drivers of destructive fishing practices, multiple regression for factors affecting fish consumption and Livelihood Asset Pentagon for impact of destructive fishing practices on fishermen livelihoods.The stepwise multiple linear regression model revealed that out of a total of seven variables five were negatively and two positively correlated to DFPs. The results of livelihood asset pentagon revealed that fishermen livelihood assets deteriorated in the last fifteen years due to reduction in the size and amount of fishes in the rivers. The findings of this study led to specific recommendations for combating the problems of DFPs and policy measures to reduce pressure on fishery resources in the area, such as awareness and environmental education, creation of alternative livelihoods opportunities and involvement of community in the conservation of natural resources.