Nankana residents protest against police

LAHORE:

Dozens of Nankana Sahib residents gathered on The Mall in front of the Punjab Assembly on Friday and blocked the road for several hours to protest the police’s alleged refusal to take action against the killers of their two relatives and their removal from their land.

They also complained that a team from Islampura police station had intercepted them as they were entering the city from Saggian Bridge in the morning.

Allah Rakha, one of the protestors, said the police team had asked them to return to their homes in Nankana Sahib. He said the team had charged the group with batons on their refusal to do so. He said several people were injured in the assault.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Islampura police denied that they had used force against the group. However, they said, a team had been sent to the group to ask them to return to Nankana Sahib.

Muhammad Bakhsh, another protestor, said the police in Nankana Sahib were not registering their complaints against the land grabbers. He said they were left with no option but to bring their protest to the provincial capital. “We have come to Lahore to see the chief minister in person and request him to direct the Nankana Sahib police to redress our grievances,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 18^th, 2015.