Muharram processions: Processions stay safe amid heightened security

Extra guards, road blocks set up to avoid any incidents; traffic diversion plan holds up.

RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD:

Thousands of mourners gathered to pay tribute to the martyrs of Karbala amid tight security on Muharram 9 in the twin cities.

The main procession in Islamabad was held at Central Imambargh Markazi Asna Ashra, where thousands gathered from different parts of the twin cities. The procession was taken out from central imambargh at 1:30pm, which was joined by other smaller processions.  Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) Spokesperson Shams Gill said that over 50 traffic wardens were deployed during the procession. In addition, over 400 Frontier Constabulary, rangers and police officials were deployed in G-6/2 and the routes of the processions and majalis, said a senior police officer.

All roads leading to the site of the procession in sector G-6 were closed until the mourners had dispersed. The ITP had made special arrangements to divert traffic to alternate routes and avoid any major traffic snarls. Among the roads temporarily closed were Saddar Road to Melody Chowk, Luqman Hakeem Road, Fazle Haq Road, Iqbal Hall Road, and the 7th Avenue.

As participants recited poems to recall the events at Karbala, Zakria Zaidi, told The Express Tribune, “The sacrifices rendered by Imam Hussain (AS) and his companions cannot be forgotten by history; there is a dire need to follow their example today.” Participants also condemned the terrorist attacks in different parts of the country during the last week and prayed for those who were killed.

The procession culminated at the central imambargh at around 10pm, after passing through its designated routes.

There was a ban on motorcycles all day, which was removed from sectors F-11 and I-10 at around 9pm at night. The ban remained in effect in the rest of the city. Interior Minister Rehman Malik at night said a cell has been established to monitor all processions in the city.

On Sunday (today), the main procession will be held in Rawalpindi, where residents from Islamabad will join the procession.

Earlier on Saturday, law enforcement officials swept all access points for the main procession in Sector G-6/2, apart from the early morning bomb detection run.

Police and Elite Force officials manned all entry points along with volunteers. Every participant had to pass through walkthrough gates, with many being subjected to body searches.

Some police officials were also standing guard with bomb disposal equipment, and aerial surveillance was conducted on the routes of processions.

The authorities did not allow any vehicles to park within a half-kilometre of Majlis venues and procession routes. They also set up cellphone jammers along these routes.

The only cars nearby were emergency vehicles on standby, while all government hospitals in the capital were on high alert.

Inspector General of the Islamabad Police Bani Amin Khan told The Express Tribune that the day went according to plan. “We deployed over 5,000 security officials including Special Branch, Bomb Disposable Squad, jammers and helicopter surveillance, mounted police, lady police and sniffer dogs,” he elaborated. Amin said there were fewer participants in the procession than last year.

Processions in Rawalpindi

Amid the many processions in Rawalpindi, two were important from a security perspective. One began at an imambargah in Chitian Hattian and ended at Colonel Maqbool Imambargah in Raja Bazaar. The Alam Zuljinah procession started at 11am, with thousands of mourners marching on Iqbal Road and College Road to Raja Bazaar.

The second procession was brought out from Imambargah Fatmia in Hathi Chowk at 5pm and marched past Railway Road and through Koila Centre before returning to the same imambargah from where it started.

Strict security measures were taken by the city police and district administration for the two processions, especially after the Wednesday night suicide attack on a procession in Dhoke Syedan.

All roads leading to the routes of the processions and the imambargahs were sealed with barbed wire and armed policemen guarded all link roads.

At all entry points, walk-through gates had been installed and policemen with metal detectors searched every participant of the procession.

Meanwhile, roadside food stalls were allowed for mourners after the district administration and organisers reached an agreement.

Most parts of the city remained deserted throughout the day as it was public holiday and the atmosphere was sombre following the recent suicide blast.

All government hospitals in the city remained on high alert to respond to any emergency, and the city district administration arranged two temporary dispensaries along the routes of the main procession to offer emergency treatment to any mourners if necessary.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2012.