Public gatherings banned at Minar-e-Pakistan

LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab Hamza Shahbaz has imposed a ban on public gatherings in Greater Iqbal Park that also included Minar-e-Pakistan after it emerged that frequent rallies damaged plantations at the park, ARY NEWS reported.

During a meeting chaired by Hamza Shahbaz, it was briefed that the plantation at the Greater Iqbal Park was damaged after a public rally of the PTI, resulting in losses of Rs5 million to the provincial exchequer.

“Using a historic park for the public rallies is inappropriate,” Hamza Shahbaz said while imposing a ban on any sort of public gatherings at the Minar-e-Pakistan.

Moreover, the chief minister Punjab rejected a proposal to charge an entry fee from people coming to the Greater Iqbal Park and said that it was a park for people from all walks of life and he would not allow any entry fee.

“Such an item should not be even brought before the meeting,” he said.

It is pertinent to mention here that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 2016 inaugurated the greater Iqbal Park in Lahore.

The expansion of the Iqbal Park has been included in the stretch of Circular Road between the park and Lahore Fort. The project also includes the renovation of the Minar-i-Pakistan, which is inside the park.

The 125-acre park is surrounded almost entirely by the old city of Lahore, where visitors can lounge on rolling lawns where dancing fountains with colourful lights have also been installed at the park to attract visitors.