Senate body directs ICT to clear barricades within 24-hours

A subcommittee of the Senate directed district administration of Islamabad to clear all barricaded roads.

A subcommittee of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior directed district administration of Islamabad to clear all barricaded roads being occupied by various five-star hotels.

The standing committee members visited different roads being barricaded by five-star hotels in the federal capital here on Monday and expressed its resentment over blockage of roads, which were creating unnecessary restrictions for citizens.

Addressing a press conference on completing the visit, Chairman Senate Standing Committee Senator Talha Mehmood said that the dwellers of the capital were being irritated by road blockages. He added that neither CDA nor ICT Police conceded responsibility of the road obstructions, therefore the committee has ordered to remove all restrictions from the closed roads within 24 hours.

“We honour our foreign guests, but in the name of their protection, we don’t want to irritate our public.” He also said that during the month of March, ICT police submitted a summary in which all closed roads were deemed unnecessary, but senior officials did not take any action on that report. The committee also directed to take action against those officials, he added.

State Minister for Interior Tasnim Ahmed Qureshi also clarified that if any untoward incident occurred owing to implementation on the directives of the committee, the committee would be held responsible.  Senator Mehmood responded that many ministers in the cabinet had resigned from their portfolios by acknowledging the responsibilities of past incidents.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 6^th, 2010.