Islamabad, Oct. 18 (EFE). – The government of Pakistan’s largest province of Punjab has banned all public gatherings and closed educational institutions as more protests against an alleged on-campus rape of a college student in Lahore are expected on Friday.
Police fire tear gas shells to disperse students as they march during a demonstration to condemn the alleged rape of a female student in Lahore, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, 17 October 2024. EFE-EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD
Protests first erupted in Lahore on Monday after reports emerged online that a female student was raped by a security guard in the basement of Campus 11 of Punjab Group of Colleges (PGC) for Women in the city.
Police detain a man as students march during a demonstration to condemn the alleged rape of a female student in Lahore, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, 17 October 2024. EFE-EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of jailed ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan has also given a call for nationwide protests on Friday against proposed constitutional amendments it claims would compromise the independence of judiciary and the ove year-long imprisonment of Khan.
In a notification issued late Thursday, the Punjab Home Department said all kinds of protests, processions, and public activities were banned for two days as Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure had been imposed across Punjab banning gatherings for more than four people.
“[I]n view of prevailing law & order situation and threat perceptions, any kind of protest/procession is likely to provide soft target to terrorists and miscreants, which not only pose serious security threats, but is also likely to cause danger to public peace and order as well as inconvenience to public at large,” the notification added.
The same measure has been imposed by the federal and Punjab governments over the last few months whenever PTI has announced plans for protests or rallies.
Protests against the alleged rape of the college student continued in Lahore and Rawalpindi on Thursday.
Over 350 students were arrested by police when they turned violent, vandalizing properties of PGC and other campuses, police said.
“Yesterday, over 350 violent students were arrested from Rawalpindi,” Siddique Hussain, a Rawalpindi police spokesperson told EFE on Friday.
Students have said they will continue protests in different cities of Punjab and Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
Separate notifications from the Higher Education Department and School Education departments said all public and private schools, colleges, and universities would remain closed in the whole province, including in Rawalpindi, on Friday.
Apart from students being arrested by police, unverified social media videos showed several students injured in clashes with police, who resorted to tear gas shelling at students pelting stones on them.
During the protests, internet and WhatsApp services were affected in many areas on Thursday.
Downdetector, which reports on internet disruptions, said around 44 percent of complaints were related to voice calls and 29 percent to the sending and receiving of messages.
Both the college administration and the Punjab government have said that no evidence of rape was found.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said on Tuesday that the alleged rape was “fabricated news”, blaming Khan’s PTI party for inciting the students to violence for political gains.
Student leaders claim the government is covering up the issue as the owner of the PGC group is an influential businessman who also owns a leading TV channel and his business partner is a close relative of Nawaz.
Nawaz is the daughter of former three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who is the elder brother of incumbent Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. EFE
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