Islamabad - Thin presence was witnessed in government offices located in Red Zone of the federal capital yesterday due to the sit-in of Mumtaz Qadri’s supporters.
On the occasion of Chehlum of Mumtaz Qadri on Sunday, the supporters of Qadri launched marched towards the Parliament House against the incumbent government over Qadri’s execution. The protesters entered the Red Zone of capital on Sunday evening after scaling the hurdles and announced sit-in till their demands are met.
Pak Army took over the charge of Red Zone’s security when the marcher reached D-Chowk and closed all ways leading to Constitution Avenue. The key government buildings and offices including Supreme Court, Federal Secretariat, Parliament House, President House, Prime Minister Office, Federal Ombudsman, PTV, Radio Pakistan and Federal Lodges are located in Red Zone. On Monday morning, the government employees, especially those who use public transport, did not reach their offices.
The security forces placed containers at Sareena Chowk, NADRA Chowk, Shaheen Chowk and other areas and did not allow public transport to enter Red Zone.
Talking to The Nation, a senior official of Establishment Division said that the attendance of the employee was less than 70 percent due to sit-in. He said most of the employees could not enter Red Zone due to tight security measures, adding they could not inform their offices about the hurdles due to suspension of cellular mobile services. He said that some senior officers also avoided attending their offices due to presence of a large number of protesters.
Meanwhile, many citizens preferred to remain indoors. The commuters, many of them students, government servants and employees of private sector, had to take a day off as roads to mainland Islamabad were empty in the absence of the public transport.
Meanwhile, meetings of standing committees postponed on Monday due to protest.
Due to sit-in, meetings of the special committees debating on PIA’s privatization and electoral reforms could not be held while routine work in the Parliament was suspended.
Number of government employees and officials were not present in the federal ministries and departments while visitors had to face problems due to prevailing tension in Red Zone.