Paramilitary forces deployed after 4 die in violent protests
INTERIOR MINISTER RECOMMENDS BAN ON RIZVI’S ISLAMIST POLITICAL PARTY
At least four people, including two police officers, have been killed and more than 100 injured in fierce clashes between police and protesting Islamists in major cities of Pakistan as protesters demanded action against France’s what they call “anti-Islamic act”.
The government decided to deploy the military troops (Rangers) in different cities of Punjab to maintain law and order situation as the protest entered the third day amid the worsening pandemic situation and beginning of Ramadan.
Interior Minister Shaikh Rashid Ahmad yesterday recommended a ban on religious party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).
The announcement by Rashid Ahmad came hours after security forces — swinging batons and firing tear gas — moved in to clear sit-ins by the protesting Islamists in the capital Islamabad and elsewhere
What sparked the protests?
Protests erupted across major cities in Pakistan on Monday after the far-right religious party chief Saad Hussain Rizvi was detained by security forces in Lahore for threatening countrywide protests if the government did not expel the French ambassador over depictions of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in France. Rizvi’s detention sparked violent rallies as protesters blocked roads and highways in several cities, partly paralysing commercial activities in Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad.
Two constables killed
More than 300 policemen in Punjab, including 97 in Lahore, have been injured, many of them seriously. Two police constables Mohammad Afzal and Ali Imran were killed in the clashes after the violent protesters attacked with clubs and firearms. The use of firearms by protesters was described as a “dangerous sign of violent agitation” by law enforcement agencies as four policemen were shot and injured in Lahore and at least two in Faisalabad.
Expressing serious concerns over the use of arms, Lahore DIG Sajid Kiani said “TLP armed men opened fire on the police and our four constables were injured.” More than 1,400 activists and protesters have been arrested from all over the province, police said.
What are the protesters demanding?
The TLP supporters led an anti-France protest in Islamabad last November, blocking highways and main entry and exit routes. They called off protests after reaching an agreement with the government to expel the French envoy before April 20. The government’s move to arrest the TLP chief backfired as thousands of protesters took to the streets and vowed to continue protest “until the French envoy is deported.”