Punjab cabinet approves TLP ban, sends summary to Centre for action

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

She revealed that the Punjab cabinet has approved the ban on TLP and sent the case to the federal government for implementation. “The misuse of loudspeakers will now be strictly controlled under the Loudspeaker Act,” she added.

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

Azma said that despite repeated offers for 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, she said 200 police personnel were injured, 17 vehicles were damaged, and two completely burnt. “An inspector was martyred, one officer was shot in the arm, and another in the throat — he will never speak again,” she 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. Bank and social media accounts of those involved have been frozen, and there is a complete ban on carrying weapons,” she added.

Azma urged citizens to surrender any illegal firearms to the police, warning that failure to do so would result in terrorism charges. “Loudspeakers may only be used for sermons or religious addresses — not for incitement,” she said.

Read More: TLP leadership to face music: Naqvi

She thanked traders, transporters, and the general public for rejecting the strike call given by the religious group. She 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 prisoners must know that their demands never even mentioned Palestine. The world is appreciating Pakistan’s role in supporting the Gaza ceasefire, yet these protests were called after the peace agreement. This was not a peaceful movement,” she said, questioning, “What was the fault of the martyred SHO?”

The Punjab information minister stressed that the Punjab government’s decisions were not directed against any religious party but were taken to uphold law and order. “No one will be allowed to deprive citizens of their fundamental rights,” she said.