RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD:
The federal capital’s high-security Red Zone turned into a battleground on Saturday, the 17th day of the twin protests by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).
Over 200 people, including women and children and policemen, were wounded when police fired tear gas canisters and rubber bullets to halt the march of the two parties towards the Prime Minister House.
Thousands of PAT workers packed up and marched towards the Prime Minister House after the expiry of a 24-hour deadline set by their leader Dr Tahirul Qadri to give the government one last chance to meet the demands of the protesting parties. Soon after the announcement, PTI chairman Imran Khan asked his supporters to follow suit.
Before setting off both leaders asked their supporters to remain calm and peaceful. The march started peacefully, Qadri boarded his bullet-proof SUV which was surrounded by hundreds of his personal security volunteers.
The administration had a three-layer security in place to stop the marchers from crossing the red-lines drawn by the government. Policemen in riot gear manned the front-line, while paramilitary Rangers were in the second layer, while army troops formed the third layer.
Initially, the police didn’t stop the marchers when they left the venue of the sit-in camps on Constitution Avenue but when they reached the gates of the Cabinet Division building, on the road leading to the Presidency, the police started firing tear gas canisters.
In the meantime, stick- and club-wielding PAT workers removed barriers as a crane they drove with them began removing shipping containers from the road leading towards the Presidency. The police, as a result, intensified the shelling, forcing the marchers to retreat.
The police then took over the crane and arrested its driver. However, the marchers continued to move ahead and clashed with the police. Subsequently, the police were ordered to use their batons.
After an hour of scuffling between policemen and protesters, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan reached the Red Zone to boost the morale of the security forces. Nisar met with the police personnel and held a brief meeting with their senior officers. “A mob wants to capture the Parliament House and the Prime Minister House,” Nisar said. “The police and I have taken oath to protect Pakistan and its institutions and this is what they [police] are doing,” he said when asked why the police resorted to tear gas shelling.
The police then started firing rubber bullets and intensified shelling on the protesters. Dozens of marchers were wounded in the melee that continued late into the night. They were driven to different hospitals of the twin cities.
Medics confirmed that over 200 people were injured. At least 146 were brought to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), while 76 were taken to the Polyclinic Hospital. Medics say most the injured were hit by rubber bullets, while women and children fell unconscious due to tear gas shelling. The injured also included media persons, police and Rangers personnel. Rawalpindi’s Benazir Bhutto Hospital and District Headquarters Hospital have been put on high alert.
Authorities have directed the police to take those with minor injuries into protective custody. State Minister for Health Saira Afzal Tarrar said the situation was under control and no fatalities had been reported thus far.
By 1:45am PAT workers managed to break one of the gates of the Parliament House and charged protesters started entering the premises. They camped on the lawns of the Parliament House after army troops deployed there warned them not to enter the premises.
The government has also directed the police to arrest the PAT and PTI leadership, particularly the heads of the two parties. Acting IG Khalid Khattak has constituted a team, led by SP City Mustansar, for this purpose. Earlier the marchers packed up and moved towards the Prime Minister House after their leader Dr Tahirul Qadri asked them to shift to the new venue. “Today, on the 17th day of our peaceful sit-in, we are shifting our peaceful sit-in in front of the Prime Minister House,” Qadri told thousands of his supporters – including women, children and elderly – who had been camping in front of the Parliament House for the last 12 days.
At the same time, Qadri advised his workers to remain calm and peaceful. “You’ve demonstrated peace during the last 17 days and there should be no violence,” he added.
After the announcement, Qadri asked for divine help in his quintessential emotional style while testifying that “God knows I’ve no personal agenda and have come out for the rights of the oppressed and the poor.” He added: “Where will these people go if you [God] do not help these poor people?”
Qadri also advised the marchers to join hands with PTI workers. On Friday, the PAT had deferred for a day its march towards the Prime Minister House at the request of the PTI leadership.
Though Qadri refused to withdraw his demand for the dissolution of the assemblies, he offered to give one-month to the government if the prime minister stepped down. “If Nawaz resigns and brings in a new prime minister from his party, I’ll give the government a whole month to investigate the Model Town tragedy,” he said.
Addressing the police, Qadri said they were denied a pay raise despite a commitment from the government and asked them defy orders from their superiors. “I promise you a salary increase and give you everything you want but drop your batons and do not use force against the marchers,” he added.
Minutes after Qadri’s announcement, PTI chairman Imran Khan asked his supporters to follow suit. “On the 17th day of the dharna, time has come to move ahead. Our ‘tigers’ will lead the march, but the women will stay back,” he added.
“We’ll record our peaceful protest in front of the Prime Minister House which is our democratic right,” he said while addressing his supporters before leading them towards the next destination. “We were peaceful and will remain peaceful,” he assured.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 31st, 2014.
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