Govt, TLP begin talks after Fazlur Rehman’s intervention

ISLAMABAD: Federal and Punjab governments have reached out to the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) leadership after Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman contacted Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Rana Sanaullah, urging them to resolve the protest issue amicably.

According to sources, Maulana Fazl intervened amid the TLP protest and the deteriorating law and order situation in Punjab.

According to the sources, the JUI-F chief held a telephonic conversation with Maryam Nawaz and later spoke separately with Rana Sanaullah.

Sources said that the JUI-F chief requested both the federal and Punjab governments to resolve the issue peacefully through dialogue, warning that the country could not afford further confrontation.

Following his intervention, sources confirmed that talks have begun between the government and the TLP leadership.

Meanwhile, a large number of TLP supporters reached Muridke on Saturday afternoon as they continued their march on Islamabad to stage a protest in what the group described as a show of solidarity with Palestinians.

Thousands of TLP supporters began marching on Islamabad on Saturday morning, following violent clashes with police in Lahore.

Sources said that the TLP rally participants are facing major road blockades on their way to Islamabad, with authorities placing large containers and trucks on motorways, the GT Road, and key intersections to prevent them from advancing towards the capital.

The TLP launched its anti-Israel protest rally on Thursday, announcing that it would march to the US embassy in Islamabad to protest the American-brokered ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after two years of war in Gaza.

Clashes between Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) workers and police were reported earlier in the day in Lahore’s Shahdara area, leaving at least 40 police personnel injured. The TLP claimed that more than 10 of its workers were killed in the clashes with law enforcement agencies.

Police contingents have been deployed along the GT Road to prevent the rally from advancing further, while road blockades and heightened security measures have caused severe traffic disruptions in several parts of Lahore and its adjoining areas.

‘Religious party spreading chaos under hidden agenda’

Earlier, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Operations Lahore, Muhammad Faisal Kamran, accused the TLP of spreading violence and chaos in the country under a hidden agenda.

Addressing a press conference in Lahore on Saturday afternoon, DIG Kamran said that whenever Pakistan begins progressing on the path of development, certain groups emerge to create unrest in the country.

He said that law enforcement agencies repeatedly engaged with the religious-political group, urging them to postpone their protest and find a peaceful solution. However, he added, the group refused to back down and resorted to violent demonstrations.

The DIG revealed that at least 112 Punjab police personnel had been injured during the clashes, with several still under treatment at various hospitals.

“Some of our personnel have also gone missing, and we fear they may be in the custody of the group’s workers,” he said.

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Responding to a question, DIG Kamran said the violent mobs vandalised public property, snatched vehicles from citizens, looted valuables, and even attacked police stations.

“They also damaged infrastructure along the Orange Line route,” he added.