Basant in Rawalpindi leaves 50 injured, one dead

RAWALPINDI: Basant celebrations in Rawalpindi on Friday left five people injured due to kite flying aerial firing.

In addition, one 65-year-old man lost his life after falling from a roof while flying a kite.

Despite government restrictions, the “Pindi Boys” during the celebrated Basant in Rawalpindi, effectively thwarted all police interventions amidst the noise of aerial firing and fireworks.

The clashes between the police and beloved kite flyers continued until late into the night, resulting in over 50 injuries overall from aerial firing, kite flying, falling from roofs, and throat-slitting.

The injured during kite flying were continuously taken to private hospitals by their heirs due to their fear of the police, and the emergency Service Rescue 1122 was not informed.

On the other hand, the police, taking action, have claimed to have arrested around 300 kite flyers and have recovered weapons from 24 individuals.

Read more: Police to launch crackdown against kite selling in Multan

Meanwhile, due to the rush of the injured in the emergency of Benazir Hospital, the entry of the general public was closed. At this point, Rawalpindi police appeared completely unsuccessful in controlling the Basant, however, to prevent chemical and metal wire injuries, the police closed the entry of motorcycles on all flyovers.