Daily Times

Federal Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed on Tuesday called the decision of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) to announce a Long March on March 23, Pakistan Day, is an “extremely irresponsible and immoral” move.

“On March 23 (Pakistan Day), Pakistan’s Armed Forces hold a national parade which is attended by citizens, ambassadors and various delegates,” he said in a statement.

“The federal capital is put on high alert for preparations for the parade. Roads are barricaded two to three days in advance,” he added. The minister urged the PDM to call off their protest on March 23, insisting they shift it to April instead. Promoting Pakistan Day as a day of protest, chaos and disturbance is tantamount to serving anti-state forces, he added.

Earlier, the Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry also lashed out at the PDM president for giving the call to hold a march in Islamabad on Pakistan Day.

“March 23 is an important day for the people of Pakistan. The day is meant for uniting the nation, not dividing them,” the Minister said, adding that the PDM’s date and policy for the march was not final as Maulana Fazlur Rehman had a track record of changing his policies in the past. On Monday, the Opposition PDM Monday announced that it would hold a march to Islamabad against price hike in the country on Pakistan Day. It was a reply that also had been staged in the same season last year.

The decision was announced by PDM president Maulana Fazlur Rehman after presiding over a meeting of the heads of the component parties, which was not attended by any of the PML-N leaders. However, supreme leader of the party Nawaz Sharif and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif joined the meeting via video link.

Interestingly, unlike the past, the Maulana did not use the term “long march” and instead called it a ‘mehangai march’.

Maulana Fazl, who is also chief of his own faction of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F), said the meeting had also discussed the option of submitting en masse resignations from the legislatures, but added that its timing would be announced later.

“The issue of resignations from the assemblies came under discussion. There is a consensus in principle on the issue. However, we will decide as to when we should use this [resignation] card. We will decide about it when the time comes and with our own consent,” he declared.

Another big decision, he recalled, taken by the opposition leaders in their much-anticipated meeting was that the PDM would organize a seminar on the issue of price hikes, growing poverty and unemployment in the country for which it would extend invitations to the lawyers’ bodies and civil society.

The PDM had started its protest campaign in October last year with public meetings in major cities. Some of the public gatherings were also addressed by self-exiled PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif through video link. The first phase of the alliance’s movement came to an abrupt end when the PDM leadership failed to announce any future programme following its last public meeting in Lahore on December 31, 2020.