ISLAMABAD, March 14: The government has finally called in the army in some districts, including the federal capital, as hopes for a deal between the PPP and PML-N faded and the countrywide crackdown against lawyers and political activists continued ahead of a planned sit-in outside the parliament house.

Army spokesman Gen Athar Abbas told Dawn on Saturday that the army would move in aid of civil power if the situation so warranted.

Although the spokesman did not mention sensitive districts other than Islamabad, some cities of Punjab, including Lahore and Rawalpindi, are believed to be among them.

This is the first time that the government has sought the army’s help to handle the long march.

The decision was seen here by observers as an indication of the government’s intention to use full force to foil lawyers’ movement. They said sealing of entry points of all major cities, deployment of a huge contingent of police and other law-enforcing agencies and detention and house arrest of political leaders and activists and leaders of lawyers’ community clearly meant that the government had no intention to reinstate deposed judges.

Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly, Chaudhry Nisar Ali, told reporters that a fresh call for a long march would be given after 10 days if marchers were not allowed to reach Islamabad. He said the government would find it difficult to make same arrangements every time.
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