Islamabad bans rallies amid new fears of unrest

Islamabad: Authorities on Saturday imposed a two-month ban on public gatherings, rallies and demonstration in Islamabad.

The local administration said in a statement the measure had been taken because of perceived threat to peace and order from rallies and processions being planned by certain groups, which were not named.

The move comes ahead of announced plans by the lawyer community to launch a countrywide agitation if the Pakistan People's Party-led coalition government does not accept their demand to restore the deposed judges by August 14.

The organisations of lawyers have said a long march to Islamabad could be part of the multi-pronged protest campaign that would also include sit-ins and rallies in cities and blocking of courts.

Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N, a major coalition partner of PPP, has said it would extend full active support to the lawyers' movement.

Sharif plans to have a decisive meeting with PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari to press for reinstatement of the judges and an impeachment of President Pervez Musharraf, who sacked dozes of judges under emergency rule to ward off a threat to his presidency. An alliance of parties that boycotted the February general election, the All Parties Democratic Movement, has also threatened to agitate if the pre-emergency judiciary was not revived by August 31.