THE clear-cut directions given by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) about closure of roads and public places sparked confidence among people that the ordinary citizen’s right of free movement will not be infringed upon but the expectation has not materialized due to administrative and security measures taken by the federal and provincial governments to counter protests and long march slated for 27 September. Apart from road closures in and around the Federal Capital, which is the final destination of the planned protests; major inter-provincial roads and highways have also been blocked and the authorities are planning to go for either total suspension of mobile and Internet services or their downgrade in sensitive areas.
The overall scenario conveys an impression that the PTI might or might not have been able to paralyse normalcy but the precautionary measures taken by the Government definitely have, rendering court relief almost meaningless. Punjab on Thursday sealed off the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as police threw up containers, barbed wire and roadblocks at key crossings to stop PTI workers from heading for Islamabad. The shutdown turned Attock Bridge, GT Road and Rashakai Interchange into bottlenecks, triggering massive tailbacks on both sides of the Khairabad crossing and leaving commuters stranded for hours. With Attock Bridge and Darwazgai barricaded, the vital land link between Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was effectively brought to a standstill. A large number of women, children, elderly people and patients were reportedly among the passengers stranded in vehicles. Meanwhile, public transport service between Nowshera and Rawalpindi, Peshawar and Rawalpindi and Rawalpindi and Peshawar remained suspended. In a related development, the Federal Government has approved the deployment of Rangers in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) and several districts of Punjab ahead of the PTI’s planned march on the federal capital. The troops have been authorized to respond appropriately in self-defence to any threats or violent activities encountered in the course of their duties as per rules/regulations in vogue. The Interior Ministry separately directed that in case of attacks by disruptive and armed groups, rangers and police would take all appropriate and necessary counter-action in self-defence and take measures to deal with any violent activity. Major highways and motorways leading to Islamabad have been closed or restricted at several points ahead of the long march, disrupting interprovincial and intercity movement of passenger and goods transport and affecting key links between the federal capital and surrounding regions. The measures taken in and around Islamabad in the name of security have caused disruption for commuters in the Hazara, Taxila, Haripur, Attock and Rawalpindi-Islamabad regions. Reports from Haripur said routes towards Taxila, Hassan Abdal, Attock, Rawalpindi and Islamabad had been blocked with containers, while traffic queues were reported around Jharikas and Hassan Abdal. It is all the more regrettable that such disruptions have become a routine on the pretext of countering protests, marches and strike calls by vested interests. While political and religious parties try to advance their designs and agendas through such protests and rallies, the Government claims it is forced to take precautionary measures for the safety of people and public/private assets. But the ultimate sufferers are people of Pakistan as they face countless difficulties because of restrictions on movement of people and goods. Many bread-earners are deprived of their livelihood at a time when families are already hand to mouth due to rising inflation, poverty and unemployment. The government takes refuge behind cosmetic measures like work from home and online classes but these too become ineffective due to blanket restrictions on phone and Internet services. In a nutshell, people will not benefit from the widely applauded verdict of the Islamabad High Court mainly because of the unimaginative handling of the situation by the government. It is also unfortunate that both the opposition and the government talk about discussions and dialogue but none of them tries to create a complementary environment for the purpose and instead focus remains on pressure tactics. Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry has hoped better sense would prevail before the planned march of PTI but apparently things are moving in the opposite directions.
