Interior Minister hints at calling Pakistan Army in the capital Islamabad
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ISLAMABAD - Interior Minister Brigadier (retd) Ijaz Ahmed Shah hints at calling Pakistan Army in the capital Islamabad as a last resort to deal with the protesters.
He has said that at first it was the responsibility of provinces to stop the anti-government ‘Azadi March’ of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) and the federal government would deal with it if the protestors entered the capital.
Talking to a private TV channel about the possible lockdown plan of Islamabad by JUI-F Chief Moulana Fazlur Rehman, he also said the police would stop the marchers from entering the Red Zone of the capital. However, the last option of calling the army could be used to deal with the protestors.
About the responsibility of provinces to deal with the anti-government protest announced by JUI-F a day ago, the minister was of the view that it was the responsibility of provinces to deal with the law and order situation under the 18th Constitutional Amendment.
He reminded that Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) had been enforced in the Red Zone and no one would be allowed to enter there. The section 144 empowers district administration to prohibit an assembly of more than four persons in an area for a specific period of time
