15 April 2005	Friday	04 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1426

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GUJRANWALA, April 14: Hundreds of PPP leaders and office-bearers were arrested during the last 36 hours, mainly on Thursday, across the Punjab to prevent a warm reception to Asif Ali Zardari in Lahore on Sunday. Over 100 PPP politicians, including three presidents of tehsil organizations and Nazims and Naib Nazims of union councils, were held by the police during a crackdown in Gujranwala. Besides, all the party offices were sealed.

Reports said the district police raided the residences and offices of the PPP activists and arrested more than 100 of them. Among the arrested leaders were Naushera Virkan tehsil president Rao Ishtiaq, vice-president Iftikhar Jaral, Kamoki tehsil president Bashir Ahmad Bhopal, Wazirabad tehsil president Muhammad Akram Beer Pehalwan, union council Nazim Tariq Saeed and Naib Nazim Malik Raza.

The police also raided the house of opposition leader in district council Muhammad Nauman Butt and allegedly browbeat the family. They remained there for hours, disturbing the family’s routine.

They also raided a marriage hall where an engagement ceremony of the son of PPP City President Lalla Idrees was going on. However, some of the PPP leaders slipped away from the scene.

Later, the police sealed almost all the access roads to Lahore.

MULTAN: Police rounded up dozens of PPP activists during the last 24 hours in a crackdown ahead of the scheduled arrival of Mr Zardari.

Prominent among the arrested PPP activists were former federal minister Mukhtar Awan, Khalid Haneef Lodhi, former Multan mayor Salahuddin Dogar, Manzoor Qadri, Saleemur Rehman Mayo and Mirza Nazeer Beg.

According to PPP’s information secretary in South Punjab Khwaja Rizwan Alam, the police had so far arrested more than 1,000 workers and officer-bearers of the party in Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Bahawalpur.

Meanwhile, PPP stalwart Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi has condemned the police action.

FAISALABAD: The district police rounded up 28 activists during a crackdown here.

Special police teams, headed by SHOs, SDPOs and other senior police officers, conducted surprise raids at the houses and offices of PPP leaders, including parliamentarians.

Those arrested were former MPA Raja Safdar Husain, PPP Youth Wing District President Gul Muhammad Mahota, city president Rana Farrukh Mahmood and UC Nazim Rana Naeem Dastagir.

The arrested people were detained at different police stations and raids were being conducted for more arrests.

Police sources said special teams in uniform and plainclothes would be deputed at all the interchanges of the motorway to prevent the PPP rally towards Lahore.

The PPP leaders claimed that the police had picked up over 50 activists and leaders from the district.

DERA GHAZI KHAN: At least 11 PPP activists, including the district secretary-general, were arrested in Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur during a campaign.

Senior politician Manzoor Khan Lond advocate, District Secretary-General Aalim Khan Khetran and Sher Muhammad Khalol were held in Dera Ghazi Khan.

In Rajanpur, those arrested were Khalil Bhatti, Sabir, Hameedullah Dareshak and Yar Muhammad.

PPP Taunsa Sharif president Safdar Shah, Sabir, Saleem Hairvi and Abbas Gorchani were also arrested.

SARGODHA: The Sargodha police cracked down on PPP men on Wednesday night and arrested more than 200 of them for planning to transport thousands of activists to Lahore.

However, MPA Dr Nadia Aziz succeeded to escape along with her more than 300 companions to Lahore.

Among those held were PPP divisional coordinator Malik Azizul Haq, district secretary-general Saqlain Sherazi, PYO chief Muhammad Arshad Dhonda and Muhammad Mateen Qureshi, who was said to be very active in motivating the workers for the event.

Meanwhile, the police also raided the house of MNA Tasneem Qureshi, who went into hiding.

SIALKOT: The police during raids in several parts of the district arrested several PPP leaders.

Five PPP leaders — Sialkot city SVP Malik Tariq Awan, VP Muhammad Yousaf Khilji, PYO divisional president Muneeb Ahmad Gondal, Shaukat Wazir Ali and Advocate Tahir Hundali — were held.

While PPP Sialkot District President Malik Naseer Akhtar was detained in his house for the whole day on Thursday by police. However, he managed to escape in the evening.

Meanwhile, the traffic police impounded hundreds of public transport vehicles and detained the drivers and conductors to halt the movement of the PPP leaders and workers.

Commuters, including women and children, remained stranded at stands in many parts of Sialkot. They protested against the district government for impounding vehicles.

Three-wheelers, tractor-trolleys and trucks exploited the people and charged them at will.

NAROWAL: Among those arrested in Narowal were district president Anwarul Haq Chaudhry, city president Rana Muhammad Hanif and Ali Masheer Abidi.

KASUR: Arrests were made in Kasur also where the police raided the residences, outhouses and offices of the PPP activists.

Prominent among those held were former PPP ticket-holder Javed Ashiq Dogar and UC Nazim Arshad Khan.

A number of others reportedly went into hiding and were determined to welcome Mr Zardari.

SAHIWAL: In Sahiwal, the police arrested PPP Noorshah President Zakir Husain Braal and former MNA Begum Shahnaz Javed.

The arrests provoked the PPP activists, who demonstrated against the police action. Begum Shahnaz was set free after two hours.

The police also raided the residences of district president Mehr Ghulam Farid Kathia, secretary-general Imran Jaani, former MNA Mian Anwarul Haq Ramay, Hassan Murtaza Sherazi and others, but to no avail.

OKARA: In a midnight (Wednesday) crackdown in Okara, the police took into custody the PPP city president. Several other activists went underground.

Information obtained by this correspondent revealed that the police had raided the residences of 10 PPP activists out of 19, whose list was provided by the government.

HAFIZABAD: Denying making arrangements for welcoming their leader, the police rounded up several prominent activists of the PPP in Hafizabad.

The arrested were Malik Maqsood Ahmad, city president Malik Fayyaz Ahmad Awan, tehsil president

Bilal Tarar and Hakim Muhammad Iqbal.

TOBA TEK SINGH: As many as 21 PPP activists from all over the district were captured on Wednesday night so that they could not move to Lahore to welcome Mr Zardari.

The arrested workers included Toba city president Zulfiqar Ali, councillor Zulfiqar Nasir, Rashid Ahmad, Saifullah Cheema, Ijaz Ahmad Jajji, Pirmahal Naib Nazim Talib Jafri, Abid Husain and Rana Naseem.