Islamabad police mull over permanently closing Faizabad route

ISLAMABAD: After facing failure to stop Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protestors from entering the federal capital, the Islamabad police department mulled over permanently closing Faizabad Interchange’s route from Rawalpindi, citing sources, ARY News reported on Friday.

Sources told ARY News that the Rawalpindi administration failed to stop PTI protestors from entering Islamabad. The protestors would become a risk for the Islamabad residents who entered the federal capital from Rawalpindi, sources added.

On the other hand, the authorities may face another problem after permanently blocking the Rawalpindi-Islamabad route at Faizabad Interchange as it will affect the businesses and public movement. The permanent closure of Faizabad’s route will also divide the twin cities.

Moreover, it was learnt that consultations are underway to hand over security duties of the Punjab Governor’s House to the Centre. The security duties of the Governor House in Lahore are likely to be handed over to Rangers or Frontier Corps (FC).

READ: PTI STAGES COUNTRYWIDE PROTESTS AGAINST ATTACK ON IMRAN KHAN

It was also recommended to deploy Islamabad police at Governor House Lahore in view of the recent protests of PTI workers. A report was also sought from the concerned departments before taking a final decision.

Earlier in the day, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters took to the streets in different parts of the country against the attack on the party chief and former premier Imran Khan during long march.

A massive protest demo was held at Faizabad where hundreds of PTI supporters blocked all the roads leading to the federal capital by burning tyres and placing other obstacles.

Following this, the Islamabad police fired tear gas shells and resorted to baton-charge multiple times to disperse supporters of PTI who were staging a protest demonstration.