Pakistan Supreme Court orders removal of all barricades in Lahore

LAHORE: Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Sunday ordered authorities in Punjab to remove all “encroachments” in the provincial capital Lahore by midnight.
Security agencies had erected barricades in front of public offices and residences of high-profile individuals living in the city, including politicians, bureaucrats and police officers.
Chief Justice Saqib Nisar rejected the provincial government’s argument that the barricades were needed to protect notable individuals, saying other security measures should be adopted that do not violate the rights of Lahore’s residents. Following the court order, police removed all barricades throughout the city.
“Life has become easier for all motorists” since the removal of the barricades, Shafiq Chaudhry, a resident of the town of Qila Gujjar Singh, told Arab News.
“It used to take me 10 minutes to cover the area where the police had installed the barricades. Today, I traveled the same distance in 30 seconds.”
Students hailed the removal of barricades outside the office of the Inspector General Police, which is situated near some of the best educational institutes in Lahore.
“I want to dance on the road in front of the police office,” Saadia Khan, a student of the National College of Arts, told Arab News. “I never thought I’d be able to experience a hassle-free ride on this road.”
Deputy Inspector General Dr. Haider Ashraf said barricades had been removed from 16 locations in Lahore, in compliance with the court order. “The traffic is running smoothly in most of the areas now,” he added.
Minivan driver Talib Hussain told Arab News: “Sometimes we’d wait more than 30 minutes to pass through one crossing in the city, (but) traffic is flowing quite smoothly across the city since its roads have been cleared of unnecessary hurdles.”