ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Interior Mohsin Naqvi said on Friday the government would not allow violent protests in Islamabad, as former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party vowed to demonstrate near the parliament building, amid suspended mobile phone services, highway closures and paramilitary deployment in the capital.
The PTI has called for a protest at Islamabad’s famous D-Chowk against proposed constitutional amendments that it claims are aimed at curtailing the independence of the judiciary, a charge the coalition government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denies.
The party is also trying to mobilize supporters through large public gatherings to pressure for the release of Khan, who has been in prison since August last year and faces a slew of legal challenges.
Social media videos shared by PTI leaders and workers showed caravans of party supporters traveling to Islamabad for the protest from nearby cities, as Naqvi, during a news conference, said many of these individuals were armed while warning that law enforcement agencies (LEAs) were ready to deal with any situation.
“They have a right to hold a rally but not the way it’s going on,” he told the media. “It’s every Pakistanis right [to protest]. If they want to voice their opinion they can, but this is not the way to do it. It’s wrong what they are doing, and we can’t give permission for this.”
The minister acknowledged that road blockages were causing hardships to the residents of the capital, but he urged them to understand while it was important to take these measures.
“We have state guests here and also other delegations,” he said. “Then we have teams of other heads of states that are arriving here. We have to ensure their security at every cost.”
Pakistan just hosted Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and plan to hold the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit.
“Our LEAs and police will do their work,” Naqvi continued. “Whoever is thinking of protesting should ponder over it again.”
Earlier, the Punjab government issued a notification saying it had summoned the paramilitary Rangers force “to maintain law and order” in Rawalpindi, Islamabad’s twin city.
The capital also witnessed the paramilitary deployment at the D-Chowk where some PTI supporters were also arrested ahead of the planned protest.
Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which allows the district administration to outlaw gatherings of more than four people on account of security threats, was imposed in Islamabad as well as the cities of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Attock and Sargodha.
“Gatherings can be a soft target for the terrorists,” a notification announcing the imposition of Section 144 stated.
The PTI says the measures are being used by the federal and provincial Punjab government to suppress the party’s constitutional right to protest and to block the growing popularity of a party that has a track record of attracting hundreds of thousands of people to demonstrations and rallies.
ROAD CLOSURES
On Friday morning, an Arab News survey showed major roads inside Islamabad and Rawalpindi blocked off with shipping containers and long lines of traffic jams on main roads that connect the two cities. Entry and exit points of Islamabad were also sealed and even people on foot complained of being able to travel.
“You don’t want people to come into the city [Islamabad] and get to D-Chowk where the protest is but at least let people go outside the city,” taxi driver Arshad Shad told Arab News.
“Buses can’t move, there is no Internet, no mobile phone service. Families are stuck, they can’t come or go. So I don’t understand what the government is doing, they are only making life more difficult for the public.”
Zafar Iqbal, who deals in sale and purchase of property, lamented frequent protests were affecting businesses in the twin cities.
“Every fourth day there is a protest. This is very wrong. This shouldn’t happen. People’s businesses are getting affected and the public is being humiliated,” he told Arab News.
“This is a curse for the public, for businessmen. There is already no business and people are worried.”
Asif Khan, a Rawalpindi resident who works with a bike raid-hailing service, equally criticized the government and the opposition for the situation.
“This government has no shame nor do the PTI people have,” he said. “It’s been four hours, we have been sitting here since morning, but we didn’t get any passenger. What will the poor earn and eat?”