Information Minister Murtaza Solangi said on Sunday morning that the Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) home department had released a statement clarifying that the situation in the region was “completely peaceful”.
On Saturday, the GB government, which has been dealing with a tense situation for over a week, had dismissed reports of army deployment as baseless, saying it had requisitioned the services of Pakistan Army and civil armed forces to maintain law and order only for the chehlum of Imam Hussain falling next week
However, mobile internet service had been suspended across the region by the authorities till further orders. The decision came after two clerics from different schools of thought made insensitive remarks over the past few days, hurting the feelings of the respective communities.
In a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Solangi quoted the statement released by the GB home department which clarified that reports regarding the deployment of Pakistan Army were “completely baseless”.
“All roads, trade centres, business activities and educational institutions in GB are open as usual,” he said.
The minister said that services of the Pakistan Army and the civil armed forces had been requisitioned “only to maintain law and order” on the eve of the chehlum.
“Moreover, special measures have been taken for the security of the procession routes and imambargahs as per past practice,” he said.
The minister said that the GB home department had also stated that Section 144 had been imposed across the region to maintain law and order, protect lives and property of the people and avoid any untoward incident.
Unrest
The situation turned tense on Sept 1, when demonstrations were held in the Gilgit city and surrounding areas on the call of Anjuman-i-Imamia, hours after prominent cleric Maulana Qazi Nisar Ahmed allegedly made derogatory remarks during a protest in Gilgit. The protesters were demanding action against the cleric.
Talking to Dawn, an official said a first information report (FIR) had been registered against Maulana Qazi Nisar Ahmed at the City Police Station Gilgit, while another FIR against Agha Baqir Al-Hussaini had already been registered in Skardu.
Unrest spread in the region after protesters in Chilas in Diamer blocked the Karakoram Highway and the Babusar Pass road for three days, demanding Agha Baqir’s arrest. Soon, demonstrations also engulfed the regions of Astore and Gilgit and were only called off after a case was registered against Agha Baqir.
However, the action did not go down well with his supporters and a shutter-down and wheel-jam strike was observed in Skardu, with the protesters also blocking Juglot-Skardu Road and other thoroughfares on Aug 25.
The government suspended two police personnel and a schoolteacher on allegations of sharing sectarian posts on social media and over 12 persons were picked up for posting controversial posts.
On Saturday, the United Kingdom joined Canada and the US in advising its citizens to avoid visiting the northern areas.
The US embassy’s statement said that American citizens should exercise heightened caution in GB due to recent protests in Skardu and Diamer and the potential for additional demonstrations, road closures, and associated disruptions to local mobile and internet networks in the region.
from The Dawn News - Home https://ift.tt/ukEDmUe
No comments: