Pakistan Army to enforce lockdown if businesses, clerics violate norms

Imran Khan govt has enforced lockdown but hardliner and fundamental religious cleric and business community are not ready to obey orders and have declared to continue their activities

The Pakistan government has authorised the army to take over in case the business community and religious clerics violate lockdown measures imposed to check coronavirus spread.

For the Muslim community all over the world, the month of Ramazan is regarded as the holiest but in wake of coronavirus pandemic, it has turned out to be a problem for Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Khan's government has enforced tight lockdown instructions but hardliner and fundamental religious cleric and business community are not ready to obey the orders, rather they have declared to continue their activities as routine.

Khan, COAS Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, DG-ISI Lt. Gen Faiz Hameed, some of the Cabinet ministers and advisors held a meeting at the ISI Headquarters in Rawalpindi on Thursday (April 23) and discussed the prevailing situation and various measures to counter any odd situation.

According to informed sources familiar with the matter, it was agreed in principle during the meeting that police, rangers and even troops can be used to maintain law and order if the business community and religious clerics attempt to cross their limit and violate the lockdown instructions.

Hundreds of violators were reportedly arrested in Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and other cities on Saturday, the first day of the holy month of Ramazan. "The situation will worsen soon if the government would not ease its restrictions since poor people are very frustrated of not getting food and other basic amenities," the sources said, adding the "government system is not effective".

The sources said that the participants received a comprehensive briefing on internal and external challenges faced by the country including the impact of Covid-19 outbreak.

The business community in Karachi has threatened to ignore government orders, open their shops and do business as a routine, while religious clerics are leading prayers in mosques as normal.

Contrary to their hard stance, the doctors and nurses are in favour of enforced stern lockdown instructions. They have launched a hunger strike in Lahore demanding adequate protective equipment for frontline staff treating coronavirus patients. The protest has also continued in Karachi. "Overall circumstances are not short of civilian disobedience if the government does not relax its strict measures to maintain lockdown effectively, it will face a difficult position," sources said.

Health workers have complained for weeks that the country's hospitals are suffering from chronic shortages of safety gear, prompting the arrest of more than 50 doctors who called for more supplies in the city of Quetta earlier this month.

The frontline staff have been left vulnerable, with more than 150 medical workers testing positive for the virus nationwide, according to the Young Doctors' Association (YDA) in worst-hit Punjab. "Situation is seriously grim," YDA spokesman said.

State Minister for Health, Zafar Mirza, on late Saturday said 79 per cent of the coronavirus cases in the country now were locally transmitted as the nationwide tally of Covid-19 patients surpassed 12,500.

Apart from health issues, the sources further said, the tense situation at eastern and western borders of the country was also discussed during the meeting and military spokesman submitted his output in this regard.