LAHORE, July 23: The Punjab police have launched a crackdown on extremists and saboteurs across the province.

This was stated in a briefing to Punjab Law Minister Mohammad Basharat Raja and IG Zia-ul-Hassan Khan at the Central Police Office on Sunday.

The meeting reviewed the ongoing crackdown against extremists. It was told that the crackdown, launched on the directives of President Gen Pervez Musharraf, was effectively underway.

According to the briefing, cases have been registered against those arrested for illegal use of loudspeakers. Legal action is being taken against clerics (Khateebs) spreading sectarian hatred. Provocative literature has been confiscated and its publishers and distributors arrested. —-APP