Islamabad: Giving in to the pressure mounted by the radical Islamist party, Saad Hussain Rizvi, the chief of the recently proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), was released from Lahore jail on Tuesday.
Earlier today, Interior Minister of Pakistan Sheikh Rashid said that Imran Khan's government is in talks with the banned TLP to present a resolution in the National Assembly seeking the expulsion of the French envoy and withdrawal of cases against its members, Dawn reported.
Meanwhile, Pakistan opposition has blasted the Imran Khan-led government over its failure in handling TLP protest across the country.
Read:| Pakistan: TLP supporters hold anti-govt protests, gherao interior minister's house
On Monday, Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had said that "shedding of human blood and incitement to violence was never the answer to any situation", recalling that history had taught that "violence begets violence", Dawn reported.
"The real fight is about fighting against the root of the festering problem, not in just responding to the symptoms. Why has the selected government not bothered to implement the National Action Plan, or even discuss arising challenges in parliament?" Bilawal questioned.
He condemned the violence and expressed grief over the deaths of the TLP workers as well as policemen during clashes earlier in the week, which he said occurred because of the government's "inability to handle the situation peacefully".
TLP has recently been banned by the Pakistan government after violent protests following the arrest of their chief Saad Hussain Rizvi in Lahore on April 12.
TLP Pakistan is a hardline religious group with a massive following across Pakistan. TLP is demanding that the French ambassador be sent home and import of goods from France be banned over blasphemous caricatures published in French magazine Charlie Hebdo.
Read:| Banned Islamist radical party releases 11 police hostages
On the other hand, as violence by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan's (TLP) supporters continues to rage in Lahore and other cities, Pakistan's Punjab government has placed more than 100 clerics of the outlawed group on the list of terrorism and sectarianism suspects.
A top official of the Punjab Home Department confirmed that the decision has been taken on the recommendation of the District Intelligence Committees. He said over 100 TLP clerics have been placed on the Fourth Schedule under the Anti-Terrorism Act, the News International reported.
According to him, the number of Fourth Schedulers could be increased as the Home Department is receiving recommendations from all deputy commissioners of the province.
Sources claimed that their assets have been frozen under the law and their national identity cards and bank accounts have been blocked. Additionally, their names would be placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) by the Interior Ministry.
The Fourth Schedule is a list on which suspects of terrorism and sectarianism are placed under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997. The names of Fourth Schedulers are referred to the local police and law-enforcement agencies for effective monitoring. If a Fourth Scheduler wants to move somewhere, he has to inform the nearby police station.
The assets of the clerics would be probed by the Counterterrorism Department. Furthermore, the Home Department has asked to freeze all properties owned by the TLP.
Read:| 3 killed in police crackdown on banned radical Islamist party TLP in Pakistan
"After this letter, the TLP would not be able to sell properties including seminaries, agriculture land, etc," said the official. "Sealing of offices of the banned TLP would be decided by the Ministry of Interior," said the official, adding that all DCs have been directed to restrain the movement of TLP workers towards Islamabad.
On Sunday, the city of Lahore became a battleground as workers of the recently banned party and policemen clashed. TLP workers also took 11 policemen hostage, who were later released after the first round of talks with the government.
The government is currently engaging in talks with the workers of the TLP after a clash with the police in Lahore on Sunday.
The deadlock between the government and TLP over the ongoing protests across the country continued, as the banned party demanded the resignation of Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, the expulsion of the French ambassador to Pakistan, and the immediate release of the party chief Syed Saad Hussain Rizvi as well as the workers.
(with agency inputs)
Read:| French embassy in Pakistan issues advisory to all French nationals to leave the country
