That no major terrorist attack occurred during the Ashura is a sigh of relief. Apart from a sad incident involving a grenade attack that claimed the life of a child in Peshawar, and a shootout in Bahawalpur that injured some people, mourning days of 9th and 10th Muharram passed peacefully. Keeping in view the fact that Zuljinnah processions are organized in virtually every nook and cranny of the country, keeping them out of the harms way from those who do not hesitate to use themselves as human bombs is no small feat. Last year, violence marked the holy day in Karachi and a deadly bomb blast killed scores of innocent people. This ominous reminder of how vulnerable the security situation really was cautioned the police not to lower their guard this time around. It was a source of satisfaction to see that in Punjab where there are a number of hot spots for sectarian strife, tight security measures were taken that deserve unqualified praise. The law enforcement personnel had learnt their lessons from their past mistakes as checking and identification of every individual coming to join the congregation was made mandatory. Given that the suicide bombers normally try to sneak into the crowd and blow up the bomb, this precautionary measure paid the expected dividend. The task during Muharram gets all the more daunting because in addition to miscreants who are on the lookout to upset the law and order situation, there are those out to conspire the polarisation of society by creating mayhem. It is hoped that the police force would follow up with this exceptional performance in the days to come. Protecting the life and property of the common man, at a time when there is a great sense of insecurity all around, should be the governments top priority.