Pakistan: Thousands gather at Mumtaz Qadri's 'shrine' to commemorate his death

Followers of Mumtaz Qadri, who was executed for assassinating liberal Punjab governor Salman Taseer in 2011, gathered in thousands on Wednesday at his 'shrine' in Islamabad, to commemorate his death.

This comes after the government said that it would bar organisations from staging rallies commemorating the hanging of Qadri.

Twitter was flooded with pictures and videos of people singing and chanting praises for Qadri near his tomb.

Secunder Kermani, who reports for BBC Pakistan tweeted about the events that unfolded near Qadri's shrine, which was swarmed by his supporters.

Another Pakistani journalist Abid Hussain reported on Twitter that roughly a crowd of five-seven thousand was present at the shrine to mark his first death anniversary.

The blatant existence of the sanctuary is a matter of great sensitivity in Pakistan, where his hardcore supporters have taken it upon themselves.