All police personnel have been directed to avoid carrying anything that could prove ‘they belong to police department’
Police personnel gather at GT Road following clashes with Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan protesters during a Gaza solidarity rally on October 13. Photo: PPI
In the wake of deteriorating law and order situation in Lahore, the senior police officials have directed all police personnel to conceal their identity while heading for duty or returning home. Head of Headquarters, Ghazi, through a wireless message, instructed all police force members ‘avoid traveling in uniform until further orders’.
These directives were issued on Monday following a clash between the TLP and police near Muridke, close to Lahore. According to official figures, one police officer and five others were killed, but the TLP claims the number of casualties is much higher.
The message further said, police personnel should not carry anything including service card, nameplate, and police belt that could prove their status as an employee of the police department. Police personnel have been advised to wear plain clothes except during the duty hours at the designated spots.
According to the police, these directives have been issued under the prevailing law and order situation across Punjab and to protect police personnel from being targeted by miscreants. Similar orders have been given in the past as well.
Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has been protesting in Lahore and Islamabad to, what they call, show solidarity with Gaza people. Police have been actively working to control the situation.
Terrorism case against TLP
A day earlier, chaos gripped Muridke following violent clashes between TLP supporters and police as conflicting reports emerged over the whereabouts and condition of TLP chief Saad Rizvi.
Police have registered a terrorism case against leaders and workers of TLP following violent clashes in Muridke that left a police officer dead and several vehicles damaged.
According to a First Information Report (FIR) filed at the Muridke City Police Station, TLP activists allegedly attacked a police party during protests, resisted official duty, and engaged in widespread rioting.
The case has been registered under multiple serious charges, including Sections 6 and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997, as well as Sections 302 (murder), 435 (mischief by fire), and 431 (damage to public infrastructure) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Police said the protesters “martyred the SHO of the Factory Area Police Station” and set fire to government and private vehicles. They also allegedly spread chaos and carried out “anti-state activities” during the protest.
The FIR, lodged by Sub-Inspector Muhammad Saleem Tahir, accuses TLP workers of using violence to obstruct law enforcement and create panic in the area. “Armed protesters attacked the police with sticks, stones, and firearms,” the report stated, adding that weapons and ammunition were later recovered from the scene.
Where is Saad Rizvi?
TLP supporters claimed Rizvi was taken away on a motorbike after being injured during the confrontation. The reporter said the area was later washed and cleared by authorities, while the bodies of deceased TLP workers were reportedly moved from the scene in containers.
Eyewitnesses reported that several TLP supporters fled into nearby streets during the clashes, with protesters falling to their deaths while escaping. The clashes left widespread destruction in Muridke, with parts of the vegetable market torched and nearly a dozen vehicles burned.
Qadeer, the in-charge of THQ Hospital Muridke, told journalists that around 150 injured individuals were brought to the facility on Monday, all suffering from gunshot wounds to various parts of their bodies. He said the injured included both TLP workers and civilians. Except for nineteen patients, all were referred to Lahore.
The nineteen critically wounded were later shifted to Lahore’s Mayo Hospital once their condition stabilised. The hospital spokesperson added that the police did not hand over the body of any deceased person to the hospital.
Despite widespread speculation, no official source, including the police or TLP representatives, has confirmed Rizvi’s current location or condition. During the day, countrywide protests erupted after TLP claimed he was shot and injured.
Muridke operation
At least four people, including police and civilians, were killed and 56 others injured during violent clashes in Muridke amid the TLP long march. Factory Area Station House Officer (SHO) Shehzad Nawaz was martyred after being shot by protesters.
According to Express News, police and Rangers launched an operation to disperse TLP supporters after violence erupted during the march. Protesters reportedly hurled stones, used spiked sticks and petrol bombs, and later opened indiscriminate fire, causing casualties among law enforcement personnel and civilians.
Security forces carried out a limited counter-operation in self-defence, dispersing the crowd and regaining full control of the Grand Trunk (GT) Road.
At least 48 police and Rangers personnel were injured, 17 of them by gunfire, while three TLP supporters and one passerby were killed. Eight other civilians were also wounded.
