Keep safe: Security tightened ahead of Youm-i-Ali

Carrying weapons, firing shots in the air, pillion riding banned in the province

LAHORE/MULTAN: Strict security arrangements have been made for various districts ahead of Youm-i-Ali on Monday (today).

In Lahore, major procession for the Youm-i-Ali will start from the Imambargah Mubarak Haveli inside Akbari Gate. The procession will pass Chowk Nawab Sahib, Lal Khoo, Mughal Haveli, Mohalla Shi’an, Nisar Haveli, Chhota Mufti Baqar and Masjid Wazir Khan Chowk before reaching Kashmiri Bazaar where it will stop for Zuhr prayers. From Kashmiri Bazaar, it will proceed to the Paniwala Talab, Shahi Mohalla, Bazaar Hakeeman and Onchi Masjid inside Bhatti Gate and conclude at the Karbala Gamey Shah.

The procession will be preceded by a majlis-i-aza in connection with the martyrdom of Hazrat Ali (RA). Speakers will highlight various aspects of Hazrat Ali’s life.

Operations DIG Haider Ashraf held a high-level meeting at Mochi Gate on Sunday to review the security plan. Operations SSP Muntazir Mehdi, Security SP Rana Tahirul Rehman, City SP Naveed, CRO SP Umar Salamat and Agha Qazalbash attended the meeting.

More than 5,000 policemen will be deployed along the procession route. There will be aerial surveillance and the route will be cordoned off using containers, barricades and barbed wire. Sniffer dogs and members of the Bomb Disposal Squad and the Special Branch will scout the route ahead of the procession.

According to the plan, a heavy police contingent will be deployed at the entrance. No vehicles will be allowed. Participants will park their vehicles at Nasser Bagh and walk towards the procession entrance on foot, police said. There, they will be frisked and checked with metal detectors and pass through walk-through gates. Snipers would be deployed on the rooftops of buildings along the route.

The DIG had ordered divisional SPs to conduct search operations throughout the city the night before the procession.

He said surveillance cameras would also be installed on the route. All security arrangements will be monitored at an Ops Room – a computerised central command and control room established at the Operations DIG’s office.

Ashraf said the Dolphin Squad, the Police Response Unit, the Quick Response Force and the Elite Force would patrol areas adjacent to the route. They will be expected to respond immediately in case of any untoward incident.

He ordered all officers to be present at the procession site. He said they would try to make sure that the procession ended at the specified time. He requested participants to disperse immediately after the end of the procession.

Sahiwal

DCO Asif Iqbal Chaudhry said on Sunday that pillion riding would be banned in urban areas of Sahiwal district and in Chichawatni on Youm-i-Ali (today). “This is necessary to ensure law and order and to prevent any untoward incident,” he said.

Chaudhry was addressing a meeting of the district peace committee at his office in Sahiwal.

He said Section 144 had been imposed on pillion riding but army men, policemen, women, journalists and children under 12 years of age were exempted.

Chaudhry urged religious scholars of all sects to preach tolerance, harmony and brotherhood on Youm-i-Ali. He said religious scholars must refrain from spreading sectarianism and should promote unity among all sections of society.  “The last 10 days of Ramazan provides us the best occasion to promote fraternity and tolerance among the faithful,” the DCO said. The DCO directed tehsil municipal officers to launch a crackdown against the beggars in the sub-districts of Sahiwal division.

Multan

DCO Nadir Chattha said carrying weapons, firing shots in the air, and pillion riding had been strictly banned in the district. “We will take strict action against anyone found violating this.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27^th, 2016.