Haunted by the past, an uneasy calm prevails in Raja Bazaar

Published October 31, 2014
Containers; police, army and Rangers personnel on the roads; a ban on loudspeakers; road closures and video surveillance: this is Raja Bazaar in Muharram. .—AP file photo
Containers; police, army and Rangers personnel on the roads; a ban on loudspeakers; road closures and video surveillance: this is Raja Bazaar in Muharram. .—AP file photo
. — File photo by Khurram Amin
. — File photo by Khurram Amin

RAWALPINDI: Containers; police, army and Rangers personnel on the rooftops and roads; a ban on loudspeakers; road closures and video surveillance of each road and shopkeeper: this is Raja Bazaar in Muharram.

Last year, the garrison city and its main commercial hub saw some of the worst sectarian riots in history. The military was called in and a curfew enforced on Ashura to ensure order.

But this year, the authorities are being extra careful and desperately want to avoid a repeat of what transpired last time around.


Traders, religious leaders and politicians apprehensive of govt measures to prevent clashes


As the sacred month of Muharram began, the rumor mills began churning out tales that only added to the tension prevailing in the city. Apprehensions about possible sectarian clashes were voiced and ordinary citizens were warned against venturing towards Raja Bazaar because anything could happen.

“We saw blood and destruction last year and we don’t want this to happen again. But it seems that the government has failed to address the issue and there are rumours that a clash is imminent in Raja Bazaar this year as well,” said Jehangir Ahmed, a resident of the Purana Qila area near Raja Bazaar.

He told Dawn his family had asked him to take Friday and Saturday off from work so that he could stay at home and not have to go out on those sensitive days. “We have never seen anything like this in the past, ever,” he said.

Local traders, from Fawwara Chowk to Dingi Khoi are also apprehensive about their security, Last year, more than 120 shops were burnt to ashes in the riots.

“We want peace and order, but the security measures in place were just not enough. This time around, police officials have video footage of all the shopkeepers and workers whose shops are located on the main road. Anyone who is missing will be arrested,” said Mohammad Tanveer, who owns a shop in Mughal Sarai, opposite the Taleemul Quran Mosque and Madina Market, which remained in the eye of the storm last year.

Another shopkeeper, Saleem Sheikh, said that the most traders had shifted their receipts and goiods to their own houses or godowns for fear of arson. “They will bring the things back after Ashura,” he said.

“There is a general sense of unease in the city. The army has been asked to intervene because most people don’t trust the police to manage things efficiently,” Traders Association President Sharjeel Mir told Dawn.

Awami Muslim League (AML) President Sheikh Rashid Ahmed did not appear to be satisfied with efforts to ease tensions and said that the government should take all the political parties on board if it really wanted peace in the area.

“Closing roads and spying on traders will not work,” he said.

PPP City President Amir Fida Paracha told Dawn that neither Punjab government nor the local administration had contacted them for help in preventing sectarian tensions from boiling over.

“Law enforcers cannot do the work alone. Political leaders should use their influence to ensure that people do not become part of sectarian clashes,” he said, adding the PML-N relied only on government-run mosques and their prayers leaders in a bid to maintain the peace.

Shaukat Jaffari, secretary general for the Tehreek Nafaz Fiqh-e-Jafariya’s (TNFJ) procession committee told Dawn that the police and local administration had contacted them for security arrangements.

Majlis Wahdat Ul Muslimeen (MWM) spokesperson Husnain Zaidi told Dawn that the government should make arrangements so that the main Muharram processions could pass unhindered.

Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat leader Mohammad Younas told Dawn that there was no truth to the rumors that ASWJ was making arrangements to hold a programme in the garrison city.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2014

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