Zubair Qureshi
Security in the federal capital is beefed up ahead of the opposition parties’ alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement’s (PDM) protest rally scheduled for Tuesday, (tomorrow) outside the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) building.
PDM, the 11-party opposition alliance, had announced earlier this month that it would hold a protest outside the ECP secretariat against delay and slow pace of the foreign funding case against the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
In order to review the security situation and to ensure order in the federal capital during the planned protest by the PDM, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has summoned a meeting of high level officials of police and law-enforcement agencies.
At the meeting the inspector generals of police of Islamabad, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Chief Commissioner Islamabad as well as senior officials from other law-enforcement agencies will brief about the security arrangements at the ECP and in the Red Zone of the federal capital.
The ECP had approached the Islamabad administration through a letter to the chief commissioner, saying that the PDM should be allowed to protest only in a specific area adjacent to the Constitution Avenue, so that the working of the election supervisor was not affected.According to the Islamabad police, all necessary security measures will be taken to protect life and property of the people as the protest would be taking place in a sensitive area.
In the meeting, security and monitoring of all the entrance and exit points to the federal capital will be reviewed and input from the allied departments like Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and Intelligence Bureau (IB) will also be taken into consideration.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a video message has also directed his party workers and supporters to join the PMD’s rally to register strong protest to the ECP against the 7-year delay in conclusion of “an apparently simple case.”
A day earlier, on Saturday the main opposition party in the PDM, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) finalized its strategy for the rally and at a party meeting held at the PML-N Model Town office, it was decided that Marryam Nawaz daughter of Nawaz Sharif will lead a rally from Lahore through Motorway and join the Rawalpindi-based main rally of PML-N at some points.
All the party MNAs, MPAs and ticket holders will reach Rawalpindi with their supporters in the shape of rallies to join Marryum Nawaz in Rawalpindi. Meanwhile, the ECP has issued guidelines for its officers and employees in connection with the PDM protest in a notification.
According to the guidelines, all employees would be required to produce their office and the Computerized National Identity Cards (CNIC) cards with them on January 19 for security clearance to the Election Commission Secretariat.
