Zubair Qureshi
The federal capital is bracing for unprecedent security challenge as three main parties the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl are set to demonstrate their respective show of power on Sunday, March 27, a day prior to the voting on no-trust move.
The Islamabad district administration and police have put in place stringent measures to prevent any untoward incident. The local police have the Punjab Police and paramilitary troops as back-up force while cannon guns and anti-riot police have also been deployed inside the Red Zone.
One of the two main components of the Pakistan Democratic Movement the JUI-F has been allowed by the district magistrate of Islamabd to hold public meeting and workers’ rally in Islamabad. The JUI-F had applied for anti-Mehngai March (Anti-High Prices March) and the district administration had allowed the party to hold its show of power on the Srinagar Highway.
According to a notification issued by the District Magistrate’s office, the party leadership has been advised to stay away from the Red Zone. The party workers would ensure that traffic along the both arteries of the Srinagar Highway runs smoothly and there is no disturbance or security issued for the commuters. According to the party sources, the JUI-F’s anti-government would march leave for Islamabad on March 26 and arrive at Hakla Interchange in the evening. On March 27, the same day when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has called for a rally in the Parade Ground, the JUI-F rally under the leadership of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman would arrive at the Srinagar Highway and hold a parallel show.
Meanwhile, the PML-N’s long march is also all set to leave for Islamabad. It will leave Lahore Model Town under the leadership of Maryam Nawaz Sharif and Hamza Shahbaz Sharif and arrive in the evening of the same day. The PML-N rally would also be launched on March 27.
Muslim League-Nawaz has announced it will be a ‘bigger’ and ‘more’ powerful rally in reply to the PTI’s threats saying the party’s workers would provide all security to the MNAs on the day of voe on the no-confidence motion. PTI has also shifted the venue of its ‘historic’ rally from D-Chowk of Islamabad to Parade Ground hours after Islamabad Inspector General of Police Muhammad Ahsan Younas submitted before the Supreme Court that section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure — already in force in the capital — had been broadened to include the Red Zone area.
According to PTI Senator Faisal Javed Khan the D-Chowk would prove to be a “small venue” for what what he described would be the “biggest rally in the history of Pakistan”.
