Protesters run amok in Mirpur
30 protesters injured as police thwart the march towards Mangla powerhouse.
Police and protesters clash against power outages in Mirpur. PHOTO: EXPRESS
MUZAFFARABAD/MIRPUR:
Frequent and prolonged power outages in the sultry summer sparked rampant protests in several towns and cities of the country on Monday. While elsewhere the protests were mostly peaceful, in Mirpur protesters ran amok berserk, setting fire to public and private properties.
Hundreds of people took to the streets against unscheduled load shedding in Mirpur which is home to the second largest hydel power plant: Mangla Dam. However, they turned violent when police thwarted their march towards the Mangla powerhouse. At least 30 protesters were injured when police fired gunshots in an attempt to disperse them.
In retaliation, protestors threw stones at the police and torched a vehicle belonging to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA). At least a dozen other vehicles, including 20 motorcycles, were also damaged in the clashes that continued for several hours.
The violent protest brought the administration to its knees. Azad Kashmir government officials went into a huddle with WAPDA high-ups and subsequently decided to exempt Mirpur district from load-shedding. No official statement was issued, though.
Taking cue from the Mirpur protest, scores of people also staged a protest in Kotli district. Interestingly, the top local administrator and several police officials also joined the protesters and marched towards grid stations.
Earlier in the day, the Mirpur Citizen Action Committee had warned the AJK government that it would stage a protest if their demand for not exempting Mirpur from power outages was not accepted.
Responding to the committee’s call, a complete wheel jam and shutter down strike was observed in the city.
“Today’s protest aims to raise awareness against prolonged power outages and the acute shortage of drinking water in our city,” Sohail Shujah Mujahid, president of his own faction of Markazi Anjuman-e-Tajran (Traders) told The Express Tribune. “This protest is against the selfishness of the so-called public representatives.”
Protesters reminded authorities of the sacrifices the residents of Mirpur have paid for the construction of Mangla Dam.
“Mirpur is the city of over 700,000 UK-based expatriates who were displaced due to the construction of Mangla Dam,” said one protester. “These outages show that we have not been rewarded for our sacrifices.”
Published in The Express Tribune, May 28th, 2013.
Frequent and prolonged power outages in the sultry summer sparked rampant protests in several towns and cities of the country on Monday. While elsewhere the protests were mostly peaceful, in Mirpur protesters ran amok berserk, setting fire to public and private properties.
Hundreds of people took to the streets against unscheduled load shedding in Mirpur which is home to the second largest hydel power plant: Mangla Dam. However, they turned violent when police thwarted their march towards the Mangla powerhouse. At least 30 protesters were injured when police fired gunshots in an attempt to disperse them.
In retaliation, protestors threw stones at the police and torched a vehicle belonging to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA). At least a dozen other vehicles, including 20 motorcycles, were also damaged in the clashes that continued for several hours.
The violent protest brought the administration to its knees. Azad Kashmir government officials went into a huddle with WAPDA high-ups and subsequently decided to exempt Mirpur district from load-shedding. No official statement was issued, though.
Taking cue from the Mirpur protest, scores of people also staged a protest in Kotli district. Interestingly, the top local administrator and several police officials also joined the protesters and marched towards grid stations.
Earlier in the day, the Mirpur Citizen Action Committee had warned the AJK government that it would stage a protest if their demand for not exempting Mirpur from power outages was not accepted.
Responding to the committee’s call, a complete wheel jam and shutter down strike was observed in the city.
“Today’s protest aims to raise awareness against prolonged power outages and the acute shortage of drinking water in our city,” Sohail Shujah Mujahid, president of his own faction of Markazi Anjuman-e-Tajran (Traders) told The Express Tribune. “This protest is against the selfishness of the so-called public representatives.”
Protesters reminded authorities of the sacrifices the residents of Mirpur have paid for the construction of Mangla Dam.
“Mirpur is the city of over 700,000 UK-based expatriates who were displaced due to the construction of Mangla Dam,” said one protester. “These outages show that we have not been rewarded for our sacrifices.”
Published in The Express Tribune, May 28th, 2013.