- Hold an independent enquiry, take the culprits to law
The attack by a band of lawyers on the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) Lahore surpasses several earlier acts of lawlessness by members of the same community that include beating up petitioners, police, and media persons and attacks on the courtrooms including that of a former LHC CJ. In hours-long indulgence in mayhem, the group forced open the iron gate of the PIC, broke into the emergency ward, beat up doctors, and patients and vandalized costly hospital equipment. At least three patients admitted in the hospital lost their lives as a result.
The attackers had come in a large group exceeding 200 black coats. They came all the way from the Aiwan-e-Adl, traversed the Mall, then turned to Jail Road from the Governor’s House. They made no secret of their plans as they raised war cries that indicated PIC as their goal and wreaking vengeance on PIC doctors their target. Despite a significant presence of police on the Mall, there was none to stop them. Even the police that guarded the hospital, or the other contingent that soon reached the venue, made little effort to stop vandalism. With Punjab CM Usman Buzdar in Islamabad, the police high-ups were not seemingly willing to take any responsibility as they had already seen three IGPs transferred in little more than a year’s time.
The incident shows that when rulers routinely hurl harsh words and expletives on their opponents, aggressive attitudes start permeatng the society at large. The highly serious incident is sad a reflection on CM Usman Buzdar’s competence. There is a likelihood of Mr Buzdar once again finding a scapegoat to cover up his lack of ability as an administrator. The hints thrown by Punjab Information Minister and Prime Minister’s Special Advisor on Information implicating PML-N activists in the incident, without holding any enquiry, is an attempt to paper over the PTI government’s administrative inadequacy. There is a need to hold an independent probe into the incident and take the culprits to law, seeking maximum punishment from the court.
