Punjab Deploys Rangers In Eight Districts Amid TLP Protest

By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 04 Jan 2023

LAHORE: Punjab’s home department has deployed the paramilitary Rangers in eight districts of the province.

The rangers force has been deployed for 60 days in the Punjab province, sources at the provincial home department said.

Rangers personnel have been posted in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Jhelum, Sheikhupura, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Gujrat, and Faisalabad districts, according to sources.

Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad Wednesday announced to summon Rangers in the Punjab province at the request of the provincial authorities under the anti-terrorism act 1997.

“Rangers is being placed at the disposal of the Punjab government,” he said while addressing a presser to announce a strategy to deal with banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).

He said that the Rangers would be deployed in the province for two months- 60 days- for ensuring the safety and security of the people of the province.

Earlier, the government of Punjab has set the rules of engagement and the provincial home department will be responsible for the deployment of rangers in the province.

The Punjab Police Department will assist the Pakistan Rangers.

Protesters of the proscribed TLP have staged a sit-in in Kamoke, a tehsil of Gujranwala district in central Punjab.

The protesters have blocked the G.T. Road on both sides and are expected to march towards the federal capital Islamabad from Kamoke. The presence of a group of stick-wielding men was also reported among the demonstrators.

The hurdles at GT Road along Kamoke, Eminabad, Chanda Qila, and Rahwali have been removed, while the security men are also said to be disappeared from Gakhar Mandi and Wazirabad Chowk.

Cellular services have been suspended in tehsil Kamoke since yesterday.

Contingents of Rangers and policemen have been deployed along Chenab River and the border with Wazirabad, according to reports.