KOHAT: Representatives of traders’ associations and elders demanded of the authorities at a jirga held here on Monday to restrict imposition of the Section 144 only to the areas around the mourners’ route during Muharram as such steps paralysed the whole of Kohat district.

They also demanded that they should be taken into confidence regarding any contingency plan for Muharram so as to avoid any adverse impact on their businesses.

Assuring their complete cooperation to the police for ensuring peace during Muharram, they also asked for foolproof security in bazaars.

The jirga was chaired by district police officer Mohammad Suleman. SP investigations Syed Inayat Ali Shah, DSP Saadat Khan, city police station SHO Amjid Khan, president of Grand Businessmen Alliance Haji Abid Khan, chairman of Kohat Qaumi Tehreek Ameer Khan Afridi, chief of Mushtarika Markets Association Sher Khan Bangash, Mian Khel Women Bazaar representative Adnan Mohammad, mobile association representative Alif Noor and leaders of other trade bodies.

Abid Khan requested that the police check the people on roads only, and that the volunteers of the Shia community should not disturb the people going to the nearby Mohallahs. He asked for frisking of people only at the main entrances to the Imambargas.

The traders also demanded that as the processions were taken out only in the city, so the Section 144 should be confined to the urban area. As such, they said pillion-riding should not be banned in the whole of Kohat.

They said many CCTV cameras installed in bazaars were out of order, and expressed concern about what would happen in the case of any untoward incident.

The businessmen said the administration should take the responsibility of paying compensation to them in case of any damage caused to their properties.

The district police officer ordered installation of 32 more CCTV cameras and repair of the faulty ones.

DSP Saadat Khan told Dawn that more than 2,000 policemen and Frontier Constabulary personnel would be deployed during Muharram, while security forces would also remain on standby.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2022