A battle of seats

This refers to the news report, ‘Parliament Lodges turn into battlefield’ (March 11). Both sides are in the wrong here. Parliament Lodges are for parliamentarians to stay when attending assembly sessions, and no unrelated person should stay there. According to reports these ‘guests’ were rather a large crowd and were unrelated to parliament. Therefore, the claim that Ansar-ul-Islam members were ‘guests’ does not make sense.

Law-enforcement agencies, on the other hand, should have respected the sanctity of parliament. Barging in with batons was not a prudent decision. Civilian administration should have dealt with the situation and broken the stalemate. The concerned district commissioner could have contacted the MNAs and should have explained the inappropriateness of this move. There should have been no use of force and violence. It is, however, a question on the state of security when a private militia flocks to a government facility. If these MNAs required security, it is the government’s job to provide it.

Anas A Khan

Edmonton, Canada