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Thousands of banned members of the Justice Movement Party of Pakistan protested in Lahore, demanding the release of leader Saad Rizvi.
A police spokesperson and witness said that violent clashes broke out between Pakistani security forces and a far-right group in the eastern city of Lahore, killing at least two policemen and injuring several demonstrators.
The violence occurred on Friday. Thousands of members of the far-right Pakistan Labour Party (TLP) launched a “long march” from the city to the capital Islamabad, demanding that the government release the leader of its illegal party. .
The rally wanted to go to Islamabad to pressure the government to release Saad Rizvi, the head of the TLP. Rizvi was arrested last year for publishing a cartoon of the prophet of Islam Muhammad and was arrested during a demonstration against France.
Pakistan has deployed police and paramilitary personnel to prevent the demonstrators from leaving Lahore. The authorities also suspended mobile phone services and blocked roads in parts of Lahore.
Witnesses said that when the police tried to stop the assemblers, the situation got worse.
The violence disrupted normal life in some areas of Lahore. Due to the closure of some roads and continued clashes between the police and TLP supporters, local residents faced difficulties in returning home.
The spokesperson of the Rizvi Party, Sajid Saifi, accused the police and paramilitary forces of violence. He said the authorities used force and injured hundreds of people. He added that some people have breathing problems because of the use of tear gas.
Sai Fei claimed that the police did not allow them to send injured supporters to the hospital.
According to eyewitnesses, the assemblers are heading towards the highway to Islamabad.
Supporters of the Rizvi Party shared a video showing the police firing tear gas while some injured protesters were waiting for medical assistance.
Police spokesman Rana Arif said two policemen were killed and another was injured when the protesters threw stones. Supporters of Rizvi said that several protesters were injured when police wielded batons and fired tear gas.
Transport containers were also taken into the main highways and surrounding roads that blocked Islamabad to prevent protesters from entering the capital from other nearby cities, towns and villages.
Lahore is about 350 kilometers (210 miles) from Islamabad. Although they have arranged buses and cars to reach the capital in a convoy, most of the people participating in the rally are on foot.
TLP has a history of holding protests and sit-ins to express their demands.
On Friday, Ajmal Qadri, the leader of Ridvi’s party, said that after negotiations with the government failed to ensure Ridvi’s release, his supporters launched the “Long March”.
Rizvi’s party gained fame in Pakistan’s 2018 elections, and its campaign has only one campaign: to defend the country’s blasphemy law, which requires the death penalty for anyone who insults Islam. It also has a history of holding violent protests to force the government to accept its demands.
The latest development occurred during Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to Lahore.
Khan is expected to go to Saudi Arabia for an official visit on Saturday.
Friday’s rebound on the Khan government also came amid rising prices in the country.
The soaring prices of food, natural gas, electricity and other items made him unpopular, even though he still holds a majority of seats in parliament.
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