ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday directed the government to form a committee to engage in talks with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leadership regarding the party’s planned protest in Islamabad on Nov. 24, emphasizing the need to avoid disruptions during the visit of the Belarusian president.
IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq issued the directive while hearing a petition by local trade association, instructing the government to constitute the committee that is preferably headed by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, with Islamabad Chief Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa and other officials.
The committee is tasked with negotiating with PTI leaders to address the “sensitivity over the weekend due to the movement of the President of a foreign country.”
“It would be appropriate that respondent No. 1 (government) constitute the committee ... to engage with the leadership of respondent No. 5 (PTI party), informing them of the sensitivity over the weekend,” said the court.
“In case no breakthrough is made, the law and order is the responsibility of respondents No. 1,” it continued, adding: “In this regard, no protest or rally or for that matter sit-in shall be allowed.”
Chief Justice Farooq urged the government to maintain law and order in Islamabad with “minimum disruption to the life of ordinary citizens,” expressing hope that PTI would “engage in meaningful communication” with the committee.
The court also directed a report on the matter to be submitted at the next hearing, scheduled for Nov. 27.
The directive followed a petition filed by Jinnah Super Traders Association (JSTA) President Asad Aziz, who sought the court’s intervention to prevent the PTI protest, citing disruptions to daily life and financial losses for the business community.
“Islamabad is a very expensive city with high property and rent prices,” Aziz told Arab News. “If your business is shut on top business days, how can these businessmen survive?“
He highlighted the financial strain caused by protests, particularly for shopkeepers in areas like Super Market, Jinnah Super Market and Blue Area.
Aziz claimed that 20 percent of shopkeepers had shut their businesses in recent months due to recurring disruptions caused by political demonstrations.
Protests in Islamabad have frequently caused disruptions to their lives of it residents. In September, a similar PTI demonstration led the government to lock down the city with containers, creating significant inconvenience for people and business owners.
Earlier this year, Pakistan’s parliament passed a law regulating public gatherings in Islamabad, specifying timings for rallies and designating specific areas. The law prescribes three-year jail terms for participants in illegal assemblies and 10-year imprisonment for repeat offenders.
Pakistan’s interior ministry has already approved the deployment of paramilitary forces in Islamabad to manage the anticipated law and order situation during the protests.
The security situation has also become a paramount concern due to Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s three-day visit to Islamabad starting Monday, during which several investment deals and memorandums of understanding are expected to be signed between the two countries.
Pakistan court directs government to engage with Imran Khan’s party over Nov. 24 protest
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Pakistan court directs government to engage with Imran Khan’s party over Nov. 24 protest
- Islamabad High Court says law and order remains government’s priority if there is no breakthrough
- Chief Justice Aamer Farooq hopes PTI will have ‘meaningful communication’ with the administration
Pakistan, seven Muslim nations back Palestinian technocratic body, stress Gaza-West Bank unity
- The National Committee for the Administration of the Gaza Strip was announced on January 14
- Muslim nations call for consolidation of the ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian aid into Gaza
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and seven other Muslim-majority countries on Thursday welcomed the formation of a temporary Palestinian technocratic body to administer Gaza, stressing that it must manage daily civilian affairs while preserving the institutional and territorial link between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank amid the ongoing peace efforts.
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Türkiye, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates said the newly announced National Committee for the Administration of the Gaza Strip would play a central role during the second phase of a broader peace plan aimed at ending the war and paving the way for Palestinian self-governance.
“The Ministers emphasize the importance of the National Committee commencing its duties in managing the day-to-day affairs of the people of Gaza, while preserving the institutional and territorial link between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, ensuring the unity of Gaza, and rejecting any attempts to divide it,” the statement said.
The committee, announced on Jan. 14, is a temporary transitional body established under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803 and is to operate in coordination with the Palestinian Authority, the ministers said.
The statement said the move forms part of the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s Comprehensive Peace Plan for Gaza, which the ministers said they supported, praising Trump’s efforts to end the war, ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces and prevent the annexation of the occupied West Bank.
The top leaders of all eight Muslim countries attended a meeting with Trump in New York last September, shortly before he unveiled the Gaza peace plan.
The ministers also called for the consolidation of the ceasefire, unimpeded humanitarian aid into Gaza, early recovery and reconstruction and the eventual return of the Palestinian Authority to administer the territory, leading to a just and sustainable peace based on UN resolutions and a two-state solution on pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital.
