‘Govt collecting damage details caused by protesters’

ISLAMABAD: Authorities have no details of casualties and damage to private and public properties caused by protesters who agitated against the Supreme Court’s acquittal of blasphemy accused Aasia Bibi.

“The information is being collected from all over Pakistan, specifically Punjab, to know the pricise material losses,” Iftikhar Durrani, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Media, told The News, answering questions.

He was pointed out the confusion caused by two conflicting government moves--agreement with the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) and arrest and registration of cases against its workers. On the one hand, the government negotiated an accord to wrap up the protest, and on the other it is proceeding against the agitators.

Durrani explained that the TLP has taken the stand that those who committed violence and destroyed the properties were not its workers and activists as its protest was absolutely peaceful. The outfit has opined that miscreants not belonging to it resorted to rampaging acts, he pinpointed.

“Therefore, it is incumbent upon the government to know who were these lawbreakers, who played havoc with the routine life, damaging life and properties,” the special assistant said. “It is a very serious matter as who took the law in his hands and what was the background to it.”

He said that a massive disruption was brought about on 2,200 kilometre long national highways and roads during which public assets were damaged. He said the minister of state for communications has called for details about such losses.

Durrani said the provincial governments have been issued instructions to collect all the details of the damage. The Interior Ministry, he said, has given directions in this connection and is closely liaising with the provincial administrations.

He said the hi-tech and CCTV cameras are being used to gather information about the miscreants. He said that local police stations in whose jurisdictions the crimes were committed have been ordered to register the cases against the culprits and catch hold of them without loss of time.

The special assistant said that those spreading hate material on the social media were also being tracked down and would be proceeded against accordingly.

In the absence of elaborate coverage of the three-day protest, no accurate information is available about casualties of ordinary citizens and law enforcement officials and the damage to the private and public properties.

Not only thousands of protesters have been booked in different parts of Pakistan, criminal cases have also been registered their top leaders, including Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi and others. A number of arrests have been made.

Different circles, which dubbed the agreement as a capitulation, have scoffed at the government for entering into the accord with the TLP just three days after Prime Minister Imran Khan’s speech to deal the trouble makers with an iron hand.

The government has promised with the TLP to form a larger bench of Supreme Court justices excluding the three judges, including Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, who reversed the lower courts’ decision, awarding death penalty to Aasia Bibi, which will hear the review petition. Under the law, it is not in the government’s power to constitute such a panel and rather it is the sole prerogative of the chief justice.