By Our Correspondents
Lahore/Islamabad/Rawalpindi : Armed with petrol bombs, bricks , batons and automatic weapons, workers of Tehreek Labaik Pakistan, a proscribed organization killed three policemen late at night Friday. A number of other policemen sustained injuries and rushed to hospital.
“Three policemen have been martyred in the line of duty,” a spokesperson of Punjab police told journalists.
Police fired tear gas in the morning on Saturday to disperse protesters. According to eye witnesses, protesters engaged with police thrashing a few of policemen.
“Leaders of protesters have been using loud speakers urging the masses to join the protest. Majority of baton wielded protesters beaten up policemen causing head and arm injuries. We saw a few policemen were on the run while charged protesters were running after them,” said a witness.
“Police remained defensive throughout the protest,” witnesses told Islamabad Telegraph.
Protests have erupted in main cities of Pakistan including Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Daily life in cities mentioned above has been disturbed. In Lahore, government partially suspended telephone and internet services to minimize effects of protests.
Police in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi have blocked certain roads with containers while the metro bus service has been suspended in the latter as authorities gear up for the long march by the banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) on Friday.
Announcing the long march on Islamabad Yesterday, TLP leader Pir Ajmal Qadri said the “peaceful” procession would begin after Friday prayers. “If any hurdles are created, the party also has a Plan B to thwart any official attempts,” he told a charged crowd at a protest site in Lahore.
In what appears to be a change of heart, the group delinked the march from the release of its incarcerated leader, Saad Hussain Rizvi, and said the purpose of the move was “respect for the Holy Prophet (PBUH)”.
According to Dawn, he advised the workers to continue the mission of the group’s founder, the late Khadim Hussain Rizvi, even if “we are martyred in the march”, and asked the government to implement the agreement — a reference to the accord reached with the TLP last November to sever diplomatic and economic ties with France.
“The government better implement the agreement in true spirit or get ready to face the consequences,” Qadri warned.
In a separate statement issued to local as well as international media, a spokesperson for the banned group said that workers had endured the “worst shelling in history” and were “attacked from all sides” near the Mao College Pul. By late Friday night, the protesters had managed to reach Azadi Chowk, where they staged a sit-in for the night. The group’s leaders said they plan to leave for Islamabad at dawn.
The spokesperson claimed that at least 500 workers had been seriously wounded while several had died.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar offered condolences and prayed for the deceased officials. He assured their families that the provincial government stood with them in their time of grief.
The chief minister also directed officials to take strict action against those responsible for the incident. “Rule of law must be ensured at all costs,” he said, warning that no one would be allowed to take the law into their hands.
He also directed officials to ensure the best possible medical facilities for the injured policemen.
Punjab govt forms committee for talks
Shortly after 4pm on Friday, the Punjab CM announced that a committee comprising provincial Law Minister Raja Basharat and Prosecution Minister Chaudhry Zaheeruddin had been formed to negotiate with the proscribed group.