No Islamabad cop attends SC security huddle for PDM protest
The plan was finalised on Wednesday in a meeting presided by SSP (Operations) Sajid Kiani. PHOTO: REUTERS
A meeting was held on Saturday, presided over by the Supreme Court’s registrar, to review the security arrangements for the SC in view of the Pakistan Democratic Movement's (PDM) planed protest outside its premises on Monday but no representative of the Islamabad police attended the huddle.
The SC registrar expressed his concerns over the lack of cooperation by the Islamabad police.
A day earlier, PDM president and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced that the ruling coalition would stage a peaceful demonstration outside the top court building over its "unjust behaviour", shortly after the Islamabad High Court granted PTI Chairman Imran Khan interim bail for two weeks in the Al-Qadir Trust case as well as other ones registered against him anywhere in the country, barring the authorities from arresting him till May 15.
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“We have decided that we will protest against this behaviour. As someone who is representing the PDM, I appeal to the entire nation to reach Islamabad on Monday. We will stage a sit-in and protest in huge numbers,” he said while addressing a press conference in Islamabad.
On Thursday, the top court came to the rescue of the deposed premier as it declared his arrest from the premises of the IHC on Tuesday as illegal and directed his immediate release.
Dozens of troops of paramilitary Rangers had broken into an office of the IHC and whisked Imran away in an armoured vehicle in a whirlwind raid while executing the arrest warrant issued against the ousted premier by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Al-Qadir Trust case.
The SC has also decided to hear on Monday the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) plea asking the top court to revisit its order of holding elections to the Punjab Assembly on May 14.
The petition would be heard a day after the court-ordered election deadline had lapsed.
The SC registrar’s office had called a meeting on Saturday to discuss a security plan and arrangements to protect the apex court during the ruling coalition’s planned protest on Monday.
However, no police official from the federal capital showed at the meeting.
The registrar had summoned the Islamabad deputy commissioner, Official Branch assistant inspector general of police, deputy inspector general (operations), and senior superintendent of police (operation) to the meeting.