Imran not allowed to hold rally at Charing Cross

LAHORE: The City District Government, Lahore, (CDGL) has denied permission to the PTI to hold a public rally at the Charing Cross on the pretext of security concerns as well as the Lahore High Court ban on public rallies on The Mall.

Senior officials of the CDGL said that in response to the PTI’s request for a public rally on The Mall on Sunday, District Coordination Officer (DCO) Lahore Muhammad Usman wrote two letters, denying permission for holding a rally.

The first letter (1698/Camp) was written on April 28, 2016, under the subject, ‘PTI Public Meeting at Faisal Chowk’ and was addressed to Abdul Aleem Khan, chief organiser of the PTI. The letter was written in reference to an application submitted by the PTI for holding a meeting on May 1, 2016 at the Faisal Chowk.

The letter stated that the PTI representatives were apprised of the threat alerts for Lahore and threats to PTI Chairman Imran Khan. The representatives were also informed about the Lahore High Court ban on holding of public gatherings on The Mall.

“Keeping in view the above, the representatives were requested to change the venue of the public gathering and a few options of closed venues were also proposed. However, the representatives could not reach any decision with respect to the change of venue.

“You are requested to consider change of venue of the said public gathering. Another meeting will be held on April 29, 2016 to discuss further modalities and allied security arrangements,” the letter said.

On Friday, the CDGL held a meeting with the PTI representatives which ended without reaching any decision, as both the CDGL and the PTI did not change their stance.After the meeting, the DCO Lahore again wrote a letter (1699/Camp) to Abdul Aleem Khan, the PTI chief organiser. It stated that reference the office letter 1698/Camp dated April 28, 2016, the PTI was informed about changing the venue for holding a public meeting of the PTI.

“Today your representatives attended the meeting and informed that the jalsa will be held at Charing Cross, and that the party leadership has declined to change the venue of the jalsa,” it said. “In the wake of the threat alerts and the LHC ban on public rallies on The Mall, this office is unable to give you permission for the said jalsa. And if your party decided to hold the jalsa at the said venue, you will be solely responsible for any untoward incident. Furthermore, the law shall take its course if the LHC orders are violated,” the DCO concluded.

In the letter, the DCO Lahore requested the CCPO Lahore to convince the PTI leadership to change the venue and make a contingency plan in coordination with the party for foolproof security and traffic diversions.

When contacted, the DCO Lahore said the CDGL had denied permission to the PTI due to security reasons. When he was reminded that the Jamaat-e-Islami was allowed to hold a public rally on The Mall last Sunday, he said that no one was given the permission and as an SOP, the CDGL never allowed anyone to hold a rally on The Mall. Answering a question what action had been taken against the JI leadership for violating the LHC ban, the DCO said action was usually taken by the police.

Late Friday night, a Punjab government spokesman said that despite an LHC ban on public meetings and processions on The Mall Road under Section 144, the PTI is bent upon taking out a rally. He said the government had also informed the PTI leadership in writing about security threats and that it would be responsible for any untoward incident. However, the police will discharge its responsibility of arranging security for the rally.