Govt bans entry of Ansarul Islam’s activists in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: In a step to avoid any untoward incident and maintain law and order in the federal capital during the possible sit-in of the opposition parties, the government on Thursday placed a ban on the entry of Ansarul Islam’s activists in Islamabad, ARY News reported.

According to a notification issued by the interior ministry, the federal government, under Article-256 barred the activists of Ansarul Islam, the security wing of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), from entering Islamabad.

The federal government believed that the group has turned into a militant organization and could involve in violence and riots during the possible protest of the opposition parties in the capital, read the notification.

Ansarul Islam’s activists are equipped with batons and sharp tools and can carry out militia-like activities, the notification said and added that the group could create hurdles in maintaining peace in Islamabad.

Earlier on October 9, the police forces had commenced preparations for upcoming protests and sit-ins of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) in the federal capital Islamabad likely on October 27.

The personnel of the Anti-Riot Unit (ARU) of the Islamabad police department had participated in training sessions held in two shifts at Police Line headquarters.

Special sessions were organised on a daily basis to train police officers for handling crowd to void any uncertain situation.