Political rallies along Metro Bus route flayed

Islamabad

The commuters have flayed political parties for holding rallies along the Metro Bus route in Islamabad and Rawalpindi and said such processions led to the suspension of the service to their misery.

The Metro buses had remained off the 22.5km dedicated tracks in the twin cities for most part of Saturday as Allama Tahirul Qadri PAT staged a ‘Qisas Rally’ at Rawalpindi’s Rehmanabad Chowk on the main Murree Road and thus, stressing out commuters.

The suspension of the fast bus service, which covers key areas of the twin cities and is used by around 120,000 people daily, was caused by security reasons.

On many occasions in the past, violent mobs had resorted to the destruction of metro buses and their stations. In March this year, the fully-glazed, well-equipped Parade Ground Metro Bus Station was badly damaged by the baton-wielding supporters of Mumtaz Qadri, the convict of former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer’s killing. With the repairs are underway for a long period that station has yet to be opened for the commuters.

As the Metro buses were taken off the tracks on Saturday too, the people, who were to commute between the twin cities for one reason or the other, suffered inconvenience. They complained they had no option but to use either slow-moving minibuses or fast taxis to reach their respective destinations and that cabbies overcharged them. The commuters said political parties should stop using roads and public places to advance their agendas.

They said politics was all about serving the people and therefore, those in politics should prove it by their actions. The commuters also said the government should ban the holding of rallies on the streets and at public places and enforce the ban strictly for the convenience of the people, especially road users. They regretted deaths of two people, needing immediate medical attention, due to Saturday’s road blockades and said those responsible for them should be taken to the task.