Citizen, JUI-F leaders get into altercation over roadblock

Police intervene and resolve issue by removing elderly people from the scene

ISLAMABAD: Rowdy scenes were witnessed on Saturday during a sit-in by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) on the GT Road at Chungo No 26, Islamabad, when a senior citizen, unable to find his way forward, got into an altercation with protest leaders.

The JUI-F has started a campaign of roadblocks across the country as part of its 'Plan B' announced by party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman earlier this week to force the ouster of the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan and the announcement of fresh elections in the country.

The JUI-F activists gathered on GT Road on the third day of ‘Plan B’, and put up barricades to block traffic. The roadblock that continued for one-and-a-half-hour caused serious inconvenience to the general public, particularly the commuters.

At the outset of the blockade, a senior citizen started arguing with the party leaders present there. The JUI-F supporters stepped in and pushed the citizen away, according to witnesses. Police later intervened and resolved the issue by removing the elderly men from the scene.

Later, the GT Road was blocked by the JUI-F supporters, where the participants also offered Asr and Maghrib prayers.  Addressing the protesters, the JUI-F leaders vowed to continue their protest until resignation of Prime Minister Imran.

The main highway, connecting Islamabad with Lahore, was blocked on both tracks. Because of the roadblock, the police diverted the traffic towards the Islamabad Motorway. However, pedestrians were also seen walking for miles because of the blockade.

The protesters dispersed peacefully after Maghrib prayers. The local party leadership has announced to hold the sit-in on Sunday (today) again after Zuhr prayers.

PML-N workers join sit-in

A large number of PML-N workers joined the JUI-F’s sit-in on Hub River Road in Karachi on Saturday, while a large number of the JUI-F and the Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) workers blocked the highway connecting Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan near Dera Ismael Khan.

Addressing the participants of the sit-in on Hub River Road, JUI-F leader Rashid Mahmood Soomro thanked the opposition parties for their support. He also thanked the PPP leaders for taking up the matter of first information reports (FIRs) against the JUI-F leaders and workers.

Elsewhere, the JUI-F protesters blocked Karakoram Highway, causing inconvenience to the travellers. The protesters staged a sit-in at Dandai and Khwagay Oba points amid rain and low temperatures.