Punjab cabinet approves TLP ban, sends summary to Action Center

The Punjab cabinet approved imposing a ban on Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan and sent a summary to the federal government for further action. This was announced by Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari during a press conference in Lahore on Friday.

He revealed that the Punjab cabinet approved the TLP ban and sent the case to the federal government for implementation. “Misuse of loudspeakers will now be strictly controlled under the Loudspeaker Law,” he added.

The Information Minister said the government and state have now decided to deal firmly with the group. Using the name of religion, they built properties worth millions of rupees. Gasoline pumps, luxury watches and large amounts of money have been recovered from them.

Azma said that despite repeated offers of dialogue, TLP leaders chose confrontation instead of negotiation. “How does burning private vehicles and attacking police officers help the people of Gaza?” she asked.

Providing details of the recent violence, he said 200 police officers were injured, 17 vehicles were damaged and two were completely burnt. “An inspector was martyred, an officer was shot in the arm and another in the throat; he will never speak again,” he said.

The minister also confirmed that Section 144 has been imposed across Punjab to prevent further unrest. “We will register cases under the PECA Act for arson and vandalism. The bank and social media accounts of those involved have been frozen and there is a complete ban on carrying weapons,” he added.

Azma urged citizens to hand over any illegal firearms to the police, warning that failure to do so would result in terrorism charges. “Loudspeakers can only be used for sermons or religious speeches, not for incitement,” he said.

Read more: TLP leadership to face the music: Naqvi

He thanked merchants, transporters and the general public for rejecting the call for strike made by the religious group. He said there was “no justification for such protests” and that the government would not allow any group to paralyze the country under any pretext.

“Those demanding the release of the prisoners should know that their demands never even mentioned Palestine. The world is appreciating Pakistan’s role in supporting the Gaza ceasefire, however, these protests were called after the peace agreement. This was not a peaceful movement,” he said, asking, “What was the fault of the martyr SHO?”

The Punjab Information Minister stressed that the decisions of the Punjab government were not directed against any religious party but were aimed at maintaining law and order. “No one will be allowed to deprive citizens of their fundamental rights,” he said.