Lahore admin allows PTI to hold rally in provincial capital

Permit allowing the gathering banned speeches against the judiciary, other institutions

LAHORE:

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Monday received permission from Lahore's administration to hold a rally from Liberty Chowk to Nasir Bagh in the provincial capital. 

The permit was issued by Deputy Commissioner Lahore Rafia Haider after the district administration took an oath from the PTI to abide by its terms and conditions.

According to the permit, the rally would be allowed from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm, and reception camps would not be set up for the rally. It continued that the rally administration would be responsible for the security of all the routes.

The permit also barred any speeches against the judiciary and other state institutions.

It further maintained that the focal person from the party and other PTI officials would cooperate with the concerned security and district administration to improve security.

The permit also mandated that PTI officials must fully cooperate with the district administration and traffic police to keep the traffic flowing and not disrupt it.

Faizabad sealed

Faizabad, the junction between Islamabad and Rawalpindi, was sealed to prevent the PTI rally from entering Islamabad. According to the traffic police, the junction was completely sealed and containers were placed by the twin cities’ administration.

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A heavy contingent of police was deployed at Faizabad. Traffic from Rawalpindi to Islamabad was diverted towards Stadium Road, while citizens travelling from Rawalpindi to Islamabad were instructed to use the Airport Road.

Due to the sudden closure of the Faizabad Interchange, long queues of vehicles formed and the traffic on the main highways of the two cities faced multiple disruptions, with commuters stuck for long periods of time.