ISLAMABAD– The federal cabinet approved a summary on Thursday from the interior ministry seeking a ban on the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) under the anti-terrorism law.
After the summary was approved, the cabinet has started work issuing the declaration of the TLP’s ban. The government will present the declaration of the ban in the Supreme Court, said sources. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will subsequently denotify the TLP on orders of the apex court.
According to report all parliamentarians of the TLP will be automatically disqualified after the ECP denotifies the party.
In a major development on Wednesday, after days of violence across the country in which three people lost their lives, including two policemen, the federal government decided to ban the TLP.
The Interior Minister Sh Rashid said the ban on the TLP has been placed under Section 11 B of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997, on the recommendation of the Punjab government, and added that a summary in this regard has been moved to the federal cabinet.
He said several rounds of talks were held with the TLP leaders however the party remained stuck to its stance. He said on the one hand they were talking, and on the other directing their workers to prepare for a march on Islamabad, with full force.
Sheikh Rashid also told that the decision to ban the party has the nod of all the stakeholders and has been taken after thorough deliberations. He said there were several other religious parties in the country, but none resorted to such violent behaviour. He said only in the past few years, the TLP has held several violent protests, bringing the entire country to a grinding halt.
He was optimistic that the ban on the TLP would be announced in the next few days, after the cabinet gives it a go-ahead. An official source said the summary of the Interior Ministry has been sent to the Prime Minister and after his approval will be circulated amongst the members for their consent.
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said no single political party can claim ownership to Namoos-e-Risalat, as he pointed that it was a matter close to the hearts of the entire 20 million people of this country. Sheikh Rashid said the government remained committed to table a bill on Namoos-e-Risalat in the National Assembly.
The minister said there was absolutely no question on the issue of “finality of Prophethood (Khatam-e-Nabwat)” and no Muslim, including him, could even think of deviating from it, even at the cost of their lives.
