LAHORE: The Counter Terrorism Department has been directed to ‘restrict free movement’ of all the 1,450 Fourth Schedulers in Punjab in the wake of recent spate of terrorism.

Of the total fourth schedulers, 65 are from the provincial capital, a senior official privy to the information told Dawn.Many of them are `Afghan-trained boys’ (ATBs) and some of them are the`returnees from the Guantanamo Bay’ (RGBs).

He said the law enforcement agencies (LEAs) had been directed to closely monitor the activities and communications of all these suspects placed on the fourth schedule.The district police officers have also been directed to ensure maximum presence of these suspects in the jurisdiction of their respective police stations where they reside.

“The fourth schedule which is a section of the Anti Terrorism Act (ATA) restricts the movement of a person placed on the list from the place of his permanent residence without seeking prior permission from police”, the official said while quoting the ATA 1997.

Besides, he said, the suspect was bound to keep police informed of the place of visit and the people he met during his stay.

The official further said a suspect of terrorism was constantly kept under observation and it was mandatory for him to register his/her attendance with the local police on a regular basis or whenever required by the respective police.

The Punjab Home Department through a notification in Nov 2016 had empowered the CTD to look into all the matters pertaining to the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), he said.

The Home Department had taken this decision in the wake of the Lahore Gulshan-i-Iqbal Park blast which occurred in March 2016. This horrifying incident had taken lives of over 70 people.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2017