Karachi: Bloody electricity riots Tuesday spread to other districts of central Punjab province as two men were killed in shooting by the guards of a legislator of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).
More than 50 people including police officers were injured in the violent protests in Kamalia town.
The worst power crisis forced the residents of many districts of the province to take on the roads second consecutive day. They kept attacking public properties and the premises of the ruling party members to vent their anger amid scorching pre-monsoon heat.
In Kamalia town, the traders observed a shutter down strike and gathered at Faisalabad Chowk in protest against unabated power outages. Angry protesters marched towards the residence of Bailam Hasnain, the woman member of parliament of PPP.
The guards of Hasnain opened fire in the air which the protesters diverted to Riaz Fatiana residence, another PPP parliamentarian.
The Fatian guards, however, did not hesitate to shoot the protesters straight and at least two protesters were gunned down,
The protesters set part of Fatiana house on fire and five police vans were also vandalised before setting them on fire. Three police officers of district Toba Tek Singh were also beaten and injured.
In Khanewal district where a man was shot dead in a similar way, peoplen protested on the roads. They burnt a motorcycle of a policeman.
In Lahore, the railway authorities closed down the train operation between Lahore and Faisalabad after a train was blazed Sunday evening. The railway officials have registered a terrorism case against the 8,000 protesters for destroying the public asset.
The indefinite closure of eight trains between the two largest cities of the province added to the miseries of the residents of two cities and the towns en route.
Meanwhile, Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of the province rejected the government blame that he was abetting the protesters against the federal government.
In the provincial assembly Sharif appealed the protesters to remain peaceful and should not damage the properties. He vowed to join them in their peaceful protests to condemn the non-availability of electricity.
