Section 144 has been extended in Punjab until November 8.
The Punjab’s Home Department has said that “in view of security threats, public processions and sit-ins can be soft targets for terrorists.”
Moreover, it added, “There is also a complete ban on the use of loudspeakers under Section 144.” However, the ban does not apply to wedding ceremonies, funerals, and burials.
It is pertinent to mention that Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code prohibits an assembly of four or more people in an area for a limited period.
When was Section 144 imposed earlier?
Earlier, the ban was imposed on October 8 for ten days and then for further seven days on October 18 due to security threats amid continuing tensions with the banned party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).
After the violent protests in Lahore, and an overnight operation in Muridke on October 13, the Punjab government had moved to ban the outfit, sending a summary to he federal government.
Subsequently, the notification, under Section 11B (1)(a) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, stated that the federal government ordered the TLP to be a proscribed organisation under the Act and listed the aforesaid organisation in the first schedule to the said Act.
After this, the Ministry of Interior issued a notification regarding the ban on the TLP, stating that the federal government has “reasonable grounds to believe that TLP is connected and involved in terrorism”.
