The Mall is not for rallies anymore

Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Justice (CJ) Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry on Wednesday banned all kinds of protests, processions and gatherings at The Mall on a petition of traders seeking restraining orders against rallies on the road, which is a business hub.
The LHC CJ also directed the Punjab government and inspector general of police (IGP) to ensure compliance of court orders in this regard by allocating an alternate place to people at the earliest for rallies of any kind, as traders of the area faced permanent nuisance and trouble due to protests. The court warned the IGP that it will be considered contempt of court if police failed to implement the orders. The LHC CJ also disposed of the petition.
A provincial law officer, on behalf of the Punjab government, submitted that the government had taken notice of the problems being faced by traders and all protests on The Mall had already been banned but there were loopholes in the implementation. He said that legislation for the purpose was in process after which it will be unlawful to hold protests at The Mall Road.
The petition was filed by the Mall Road Traders Association submitting that business activity at The Mall had been badly affected due to frequent protests. They said that different political, religious and other parties hold protests on a daily basis especially on Friday. The association said that the traffic police had to block all adjoining roads of The Mall whenever a rally was held, which created problems for the people to reach business centres on The Mall.
The petitioners had requested the court to issue a restraining order against holding of protest on The Mall. They had also requested the court to direct authorities to adopt measures to confine protests to Nasir Bagh besides ensuring a smooth flow of traffic on The Mall.