LAHORE – The imposition of governor rule in Balochistan could not heal the wounds of Quetta bombings as the carnage sore continues rankling the nation.
On the third night of protest by Hazaras and the people at large across the country, Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Asharf ousted the utterly irresponsible government of chief minister Aslam Raisani.
The step came only after the protesters, including children and women, put the bodies of violence victims on Alamdar Road for three days and a barrage of condemnation on electronic, print and social media. The scale of suffering of the Hazaras and the sheer insensitivity of those in power also sent ripples across the globe as people in the country took to the streets. So did the Lahorites.
To show solidarity with the violence-hit people, the Majlis-e-Wahdatul Muslimeen organised a three-day sit-in outside the Governor House, which was backed by civil society and religio-political parties, lawyers, students, paramedics and trade unions. On Monday, the Majlis called off its sit-in after the Quetta protesters ended their protest. But they said the wounds of the victims would not be healed by mere imposition of governor rule and peace would not be ensured unless the murderers and their abettors are brought to justice, and systematic changes are put in place to fight out the monster of sectarianism.
Earlier in the day, various groups staged demonstrations across the city to show solidarity with the Quetta mourners. Markets remained closed while courts wore a deserted look as lawyers, following the call of Pakistan Bar Council, went on strike to condemn the Quetta carnage.
The protesting lawyers demanded registration of a murder case against former Balochistan Chief Minister Aslam Raisani. The protesting lawyers boycotted the court proceedings in the Lahore High Court and district courts. However, the courts heard only urgent cases. The Lahore High Court Bar Association at its general house meeting under LHCBA President Shahram Sarwar Chaudhry approved a resolution against the tragedy and raised the demand for a judicial inquiry.
Addressing the general house meeting, the members condemned the sectarian violence and demanded the government bring culprits to justice.
They took a swipe at the ex-Balochistan chief minister saying that he was on tour of London with his family when the people of his province were being massacred. Vice President Hafeefur Rehman, Secretary Sardar Akbar Ali Dogar and other senior lawyers were also present in the meeting.
TRAVEL TROUBLES: The suspension of public transport due to protest against the Quetta carnage and long march have added to commuters woes.
Sunday was the toughest day for the travellers while the situation remained the same until Monday evening. Thousands of people could not reach Lahore. Moreover fuel crisis rubbed salt into their wounds. There are reports that to avoid huge gathering at long-march and to restrict the public movement, law enforcement agencies blocked the roads from different places in major cities which resulted the traffic off the road. The participants of the protest demos against the Quetta bombings had also blocked the roads in many cities during their sit-in. The thousands of commuters in the City faced problems due shortage of buses and vans at major routes. The Canal Road, Multan Road, Raiwind Road and The Mall Road were almost blocked for movement on Sunday evening and the situation remained same for at least 18 hours.