Food street sprouts up in Azadi march tent village

People enjoy halwa puri, naan chana breakfast; Ansarul Islam conducts morning drill

ISLAMABAD: The second day of Azadi march organized by Jamiat-e-Ulema-Fazl (JUI-F) at H-9 ground dawned with uncertainty of what next was waiting for the marchers who have travelled across the country to dismantle the incumbent government.

At the outset of the day, the protesters came out of their tents and offered Fajr prayers. Following this, the protesters fueled them up with heavy breakfast including halwa puri, vermicelli, naan and chana.

Meanwhile, volunteers of Ansarul Islam, an organisation of JUI-F, performed their morning drill and there was a change of guards. The Ansarul Islam men performing security on the chilly night finally got time to snuggle into their sleeping bags as fresh replacements arrived to take positions on designated spots.

Azadi march participants hunker down in capital

The organisers kept making announcements at regular intervals from the central container directing the participants to stay alert. The protest venue remained packed with thousands of protesters gathered at the venue while the organisers kept playing party anthems for keeping them charged.

The protesters held symbolic funeral of Prime Minister Imran Khan while amidst all this activity, they caught a pickpocket and recovered a stolen mobile phone. The suspect was handed over to the protest organisers for further action.

A huge number of participants were delighted when the leaders of Jamiat-e-Ulema-Fazl (JUI-F) and other political parties showed up on the stage. The protesters, patiently waiting to see glimpse of their leaders, welcomed them by chanting party and anti-government slogans.



The leaders questioned why the administration was constantly issuing threat alerts if no such alerts were issued in the sit-in staged by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) which continued for 126 days.

In pictures: Azadi March rallies into federal capital

Food street

Moreover, a large number of food stalls have sprout out as food vendors are seeing the protest as lucrative business opportunity and were pleased to sell their products in a few of hours which usually took almost consumed half a day. The protesters were also contended as they did not have to travel far from their camps to satisfy their appetites.

The vendors offered various street foods including fruit chat, chana chat, popcorn, and sugarcane juice.

Stalls selling biscuits, candies, combs, soap and shampoo sachets have also emerged making quick bucks from travelers. It seems like the vendors are among the happiest people on the arrival of Azadi march at Islamabad as it boomed their business.

Proceedings halted

Owing to the duties of police personnel in Azadi march, a number of suspects from Adyala Jail could not be presented in Rawalpindi district courts on Saturday.

However, only the suspects nominated in cases under terrorism charges and other heinous crimes were brought to special courts. 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3^rd, 2019.