Police tear gas, baton-charge protesters: Rawalpindi remains shut to mourn BB's death

Thousands of people with tears running down from their eyes attended Ghaibana Namaz e Jinaza (funeral in absentia) of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, held here at historical Liaqat Bagh, the venue where she was assassinated on Thursday.
As thousands of angry and visibly grief-stricken protesters and workers of PPP tried to march toward Lal Haweli, police and law enforcer resorted to severe tear gassing and baton charging them to stop from marching toward the Haweli.
Leaders and activists of mainstream political parties including Pakistan Peoples Party, Pakistan Muslim League-N, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and other political parties and civil society organisations attended the funeral. They paid glowing tributes to martyred leader.
Prominent among them were PPP leaders Qazi Sultan, Agha Riazul Islam, Sardar Shaukat, Anjum Paracha and Tauqeer Abbasi, PML leaders Haneef Abbasi, Sardar Naseem, Ziaullah Shah and Shahryar Riaz. The funeral i9n absentia prayer was led by Maulana Yaqoob Nakshbandi.
After offering funeral prayer the angry and charged activists marched towards the Lal Havely, the residence of former railway minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, while chanting anti government and anti Musharraf slogans.
But the heavy contingents of riot police and para military forces contained the protesters from marching toward Lal Hawali and resorted to heavy lathi charge and teargas shelling to disperse them.
The area turned into battle-ground and skirmishes between police and demonstrators continued for hours. The whole area was engulfed with smoke of tear gas fired by police to disperse demonstrators. Later, the protesters assembled at the Committee Chowk and protested against the murder of Benazir Bhutto.
Meanwhile, the life remained stand still in Rawalpindi as traffic remained off the road, business centers closed. Mostly people remained indoors. Rangers have been deployed in the city to maintain law and order situation.
The PPP supporters burnt tyres on the main Murree Road and other roads of the city. They also broke screens and glasses of the vehicles in their access and banks and other public sector buildings.
All the elections offices of Pakistan Muslim League (Q) were destroyed and burnt while banners, hoardings and flags of the PML-Q candidates were not seen anywhere in the city. Large number Pakistan Peoples Party workers lit candles at the gate of Liaqat Hall in memory of their slain leader.