Lahore District Council has decided not to provide permission for the Aurat March to proceed with their rally because they are concerned about a potential fight with the organizers of the JI March. However, they have stated that the right to assemble is protected by the Constitution.
LAHORE: The deputy commissioner (DC) of Lahore, Rafia Haider, has refused permission to organise Aurat March in the provincial capital citing security concerns, alleged public ‘reservation’ and fear of a clash with the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) who have ‘announced a programme against the Aurat March’.
For a gathering at Nasir Bagh and a march around the park, the Aurat March organising group had requested a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the DC.
DC Haider, however, turned down the application due to security issues and threat notifications.
“Your application has been reviewed, and it has come to light that in light of the current security scenario, threat alerts, and law and order situation, as well as in light of activities like contentious cards and banners for raising awareness of women’s rights and strong reservations of [the] general public and religious organisations, especially Jamaat-e-Islami, who had also announced a programme against the Aurat March,” the application was denied.
The DC said that there was a “fear of confrontation in [the] two factions” and consequently rejected permission for the convening of the Aurat March at Nasir Bagh as well as previous march destinations.
“NOC may not be provided for organising Aurat March/Convention at Alhamra Hall, Mall Road/Aiwan-e-Iqbal, rally from Press Club, Shimla Hill to Faisal Chowk, Mall Road and also at Nasir Bagh, Lahore,” the statement reads.
To “prevent any police and order issue or catastrophe,” she claimed, the NOC appeal was rejected.
Turning to social media, the Aurat March organisers “strongly protested the rejection of its application”, noting that the march had “the right to assembly under Article 16 of the Constitution of Pakistan”.
Aurat March Lahore (@auratmarchlahore) shared a post.
The “Haya March” by the Jamaat-e-Islami is cited as the basis for the NOC application’s denial, according to the statement.
The Aurat March was “being prohibited from expressing its constitutional right, not the group instigating violence,” the statement said, even though the DC recognised that the JI had launched a programme against the march.
“As a people’s movement, our fundamental rights are being blatantly denied by the DC’s actions. To exercise our constitutional right to march, we don’t need a NOC. There is no justifiable “public order” justification to keep us from congregating.
The organisers reaffirmed their determination to hold the march on March 8 despite the lack of a NOC and emphasised that courts have “previously validated” the right to host Aurat March in 2020.
They intend to fight DC Haider’s effort in court and are scheduled to reveal their course of action at a news conference on March 6.
The DC’s denial of the NOC request was denounced by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP). It requested that the Aurat March be authorised and protected by the interim administration.
It is important to remember that even if members of a religious group protested the Aurat March the previous year, strong security measures prevented any unpleasant incidents.
