RAWALPINDI: The local administration has rejected the plan submitted by Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) for receiving its leader Dr Tahirul Qadri on his arrival at Benazir Bhutto Airport on Monday.

However, the PAT leaders threatened to stage a sit-in outside the airport and in Islamabad if the government did not allow them to hold public meeting and carry out a rally from garrison city to Lahore.

Earlier, in a meeting between PAT leaders Ahmed Nawaz Ajum, Hanif Mustafvi, Anar Khan Gondal and local administration led by DCO Sajid Zafar Dall, it was decided that the administration will take a final decision after receiving government’s directives.

“The sit-in will be staged in Islamabad if the government tried to divert Dr Tahirul Qadri’s scheduled flight on June 23 to Lahore or elsewhere. The situation will go out of control if the government tried to stop our peaceful agitation,” PAT Rawalpindi spokesman Suhail Abbasi said.

“We had submitted a plan to the local administration on Saturday which included putting up a stage outside the airport where Dr Qadri will deliver a speech and then lead the rally to Lahore,” he said.

The local leader said on the request of the administration, the PAT shifted the stage some yards away from the airport.

However, he said within half an hour of the meeting the administration informed the PAT leaders that the interior minister had rejected the plan.

DCO Sajid Zafar Dall said the decision was not final and the administration was working on finding a solution.

Published in Dawn, June 22nd , 2014

The Qadri enigma

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