MURIDKE: The law enforcement agencies (LEAs) have dispersed violent protesters belonging to the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) after a night of unrest in Muridke that left one police officer martyred and dozens of personnel injured, police sources said.
According to police, the violent clashes erupted late on the night of October 12 and 13, when TLP workers attacked law enforcement officials with stones, nail-studded sticks, and petrol bombs.
Initial negotiations were held with the protest leaders, and the administration advised them to move their demonstration to a less disruptive location. However, police sources said that the protest leadership continued to incite the crowd during the talks.
The mob resorted to violent tactics, snatching weapons from police personnel and opening fire using those seized firearms. Postmortem reports and initial forensic findings confirmed that bullets recovered from the scene were fired from the weapons taken from police officers.
In an effort to prevent a larger tragedy, police responded with tear gas and baton charges, but the mob grew more aggressive, launching coordinated attacks on officers and vehicles. At least 40 government and private vehicles, including a university bus, were set on fire, and several shops were also torched.
Police sources reported that 48 officers were injured, 17 of them suffering gunshot wounds, while dozens of civilians were also hurt. Initial details suggest that three TLP activists and one bystander were killed during the clashes.
Eyewitnesses said that some protesters used vehicles to ram into crowds, adding to the chaos. Multiple locations saw indiscriminate firing by violent elements.
Police have arrested several suspects, but TLP chief Saad Rizvi and some other leaders managed to flee the scene, officials confirmed. A search operation is underway to apprehend those involved.
Authorities described the incident as a coordinated act of organized violence, allegedly incited by the protest leadership before they escaped, endangering both citizens and state institutions.
Police officials said that snatching weapons, using petrol bombs, and setting vehicles ablaze cannot be termed peaceful protest, and those responsible will be held accountable under the law.
The death of an innocent passerby, police added, is a tragic reminder of the need for collective action to safeguard lives and property through a unified national strategy.
