Rana Sana orders removal of roadblocks

Takes a strong exception of road blocks set up by the police in Rawalpindi

RAWALPINDI: Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah took a strong exception of road blocks set up by the police in Rawalpindi and ordered removal of all barriers to allow free flow of traffic.

Rana was accompanied by Rawalpindi Mayor Naseem Khan as they toured the city top make sure that the people were not perturbed due the rally of ousted premier.

Residents of Rawalpindi on Wednesday faced numerous problems due to roadblocks on routes connecting the city’s main Murree Road ahead of the rally of former PM Nawaz Sharif.

At different points, altercations between motorists and police personnel were witnessed as commuters faced problems in accessing the main artery of the city.

The police had placed containers, barricades, and barbed wire. The motorists at some points forcefully crossed the blockades.

The road blockades affected patients the most. Murree Road is used in one way or another by residents to reach three allied hospitals. Liaquat Road leading to District Headquarters Hospital was blocked at Liaquat Bagh. Access to Benazir Bhutto Hospital on Murree Road was completely denied. The road from Commercial Market connecting Holy Family Hospital with Murree Road was also blocked.

Though the police allowed ambulances to reach the hospitals, patients traveling in private vehicles found it difficult to reach at the hospitals.

City Traffic Police (CTP), following instructions of Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Yusaf Ali Shahid, diverted traffic on alternate routes.

Meanwhile, Rescue 1122 hardly managed to bring an 11 year old child namely Tayyab suffering from Appendix from Kotli Sattian to Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) for treatment. “It took four hours to bring the patient in the hospital from Kotli as roads were blocked,” said a rescuer.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 10^th, 2017.