NAROWAL: Pasrur Municipal Committee (MC) employees staged a protest on Friday against the police and assistant commissioner (AC), accusing them of failing to arrest those responsible for an attack on the price control magistrate.

On the other hand, traders also took to the street against the magistrate, accusing him of extortion.

MC employees protested against the authorities’ failure to arrest the people who attacked and injured Chief Officer Muhammad Yusuf Briar and his team in Pasrur.

They demanded immediate arrest of the shopkeepers involved in the killing.

As a result of the protest, municipal services, including waste collection, were halted for two days, leaving piles of garbage on roads and streets across the city.

The strike by sanitation workers has caused a foul stench to spread throughout Pasrur.

MC employees staged a sit-in against the police’s inaction and AC’s conduct. They demanded immediate action against those responsible for the murder.

On the other side, hundreds of shopkeepers protested against what they called the inappropriate behaviour of the price control magistrate. They accused the magistrate of extortion and abuse.

They staged a rally from Kutchery Chowk to the assistant commissioner’s office, holding placards and chanting slogans.

The shopkeepers have also circulated a footage on social media, alleging misconduct by the magistrate.

According to the shopkeepers, the chief officer was collecting monthly extortion, fining those who refused to pay as much as Rs25,000. They said they were already burdened by heavy taxes and rising electricity bills, calling for a legal action against the magistrate.

Attempts to get comments from Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Zulqarnain and District Police Officer Rana Umar Farooq regarding the situation were unsuccessful.

Both MC employees and shopkeepers have appealed to Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to intervene and resolve the issue.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2024

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