Over 500 protesters gathered outside the Jhawarian Police Station to protest against the installation of satellite cable on Wednesday afternoon.
Residents said that the protesters had previously carried out a rally outside of the cable offices and had also broken several windows. “They kept chanting that they wouldn’t allow the cable to be installed because it would ruin the moral fabric of the society,” said Jhawarian resident Shafqat Bibi.
The protesters continued their protest outside the local police station and after assurances from Shahpur District Superintendent Police (DSP) Rana Ghulam Murtaza, dispersed after nearly two hours of protesting. “There was a huge crowd and they said that if the cable was installed they would continue protesting and would take the matter to the provincial assembly,” Murtaza said. According to eye-witnesses cable was being installed in a Jhawarian locality when several clerics called a strike. About 25 clerics and traders led a protest against the installation of the cable. “We will not allow American and Indian television channels to corrupt the minds of our youth in this area,” said Maulvi Matiur Rehman.
Outside the police station Maulvi Matiur Rehman, Abdul Rehman, Abdul Razaq, Anjuman Tajran president Muhammad Maqbool, Syed Tahir Hussain, Muhammad Ahsan addressed a large gathering and said that they would not allow obscenity in Jhawarian.
“This is a peaceful and religious city and we refuse to allow any cable networks to be telecast here,” said Abdul Rehman, adding “It is bad enough that our government has allowed such channels to be telecast all over the nation but we refuse to let this happen here.”
The protesters said that they had ‘foiled the designs of miscreants to spread obscenity through cable channels’. “We will stop the installation of a cable by any means necessary,” said Syed Tahir Hussain, adding “there will be no ‘Munni badnam’ or ‘Sheila ki jawani’ on display in Jhawarian”.
After learning about the protest, Shahpur (DSP) Murtaza and SHO Sheikh Zafar Iqbal reached the spot and negotiated with the Anjuman-e-Tajiran, clerics and notables of the area including former naib nazim Tahir Mehmood Gujjar and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) president Seth Nasr Iqbal. “No one will be allowed to install a television cable in Jhawarian. There will be no disturbing the peace,” said DSP Murtaza.
The protesters and SHO Zafar Iqbal warned that if the cable operators did not remove their equipment in 24 hours their equipment would be seized and their licence would be revoked.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 24th, 2011.
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