The Punjab government has said it will request the federal government to ban the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan.
On October 13, riot police had forcibly broken a sit-in staged by the TLP on GT Road at Muridke. The protesters had earlier clashed with law enforcement. Party workers and supporters had set out for a Gaza Solidarity March on Islamabad, vowing to set up camp next to the US embassy.
The government said after they were denied permission, the marchers took to the streets, declined talks and clashed with law enforcement. Government leaders argued that the march lacked justification now that a ceasefire had been agreed. On the day the march was scheduled, police surrounded party the headquarters in Lahore. Hundreds of protesters, led by the party president, clashed with the police, broke through the barriers and pushed on.
The violence escalated after the protesters reached Muridke. Punjab Police claimed that a police officer was martyred and 50 were wounded in the violence. They said three TLP activists and a passerby also died.
“TLP chief Saad Rizvi and his brother are on the run. The police are after them. Cases charging them with terrorism have been lodged against them. We will soon arrest the brothers,” Lahore police chief Faisal Kamran said, adding that there is zero tolerance for the party.
There have been reports that police recovered millions of rupees, foreign currency and a large quantity of gold during a raid at the TLP chief Rizvi’s house.
In a special meeting on law and order, the government decided to ask the federal government to ban the party, confiscate its assets, lodge anti-terrorism cases against its workers and place its leaders on the intelligence agencies’ watch list.
“Some policemen were seen facilitating the TLP activists. This created a public perception that the party follows instructions from the establishment or some intelligence agencies,” Inam Ghani, a resident of Lahore, said.
In 2024 a senior leader of the party had threatened the superior judiciary. “A case was registered against him and an arrest was claimed. But later there was no mention of the case and nobody knew what had happened. After a while, the leader re-surfaced in the TLP meetings,” Shahbaz Hussain, a resident of Islamabad said. Hussain said such selective and discriminatory law enforcement had eroded the credibility of the state institutions. He said the National Action Plan implementation, too, had been selective.
The platform was initially formed in support of Mumtaz Qadri. Subsequently, several leaders joined Khadim Rizvi to establish a new organisation. In 2017, it was registered as a political party.
TLP account
“Dozens of Labbaik activists have been killed in the operation,” Muhammad Zohaib, a party worker has said.
Following the Muridke operation, according to some reports, more than 2,000 TLP activists were arrested from the Punjab and Karachi.
Some TLP activists claim that the party and its leader have always been peaceful. “The action against the TLP is meant to please Israel. The government has an obvious tilt towards Israel. They want to suppress the voices that speak for the victims of Gaza,” said Zaheer Abbas, another TLP activist.
Over the years, the TLP has held several violent rallies on issues ranging from publication of blasphemous caricatures in France and the release of Asia Bibi, following her acquittal. The party was founded by firebrand cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi. After his death, his son, Saad Rizvi, has led the party.
The party’s popularity is put down mostly to its position on the issue of blasphemy. Since November 2017, it has held six major protests, sit-ins and marches.
The platform was initially formed to raise a voice for the release Mumtaz Qadri, the police guard who had killed the then Punjab governor, Salmaan Taseer. Subsequently, some religious and political leaders joined Rizvi to establish a new organisation. In 2017, it was registered as a political party.
The party boasts huge street power. Its political role and active participation in 2018 general elections was allegedly crafted by the ‘establishment’ to dent the political and electoral support for the then ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz. Many political observers say the ‘religious’ agenda was exploited for political gain. The party polled the third-largest number of votes in the Punjab and placed fifth in the country in 2018 general election. It also won two seats in Sindh Assembly. Overall, it secured 2.19 million votes and cost the PML-N more than a dozen National Assembly seats. However, it was marginalised in the subsequent by-polls and general elections in 2024.
In 2021, the federal government announced its decision to ban the TLP over its violent and extremist behavior. However, the decision was soon withdrawn.
“The possibility of banning the party because of its violent behavior cannot be ruled out,” analyst Muhammad Amir Rana tells The News on Sunday. Rana says the recent episode turned ugly after policemen were killed in the clash. He also said the TLP seemed to have lost important backers.
The author is a staff reporter. He can be reached at vaqargillanigmail.com