LAHORE: The leader of the radical Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party was released from Kot Lakhpat prison in Lahore on Thursday, Jail Superintendent Ijaz Asghar confirmed to media.
As per videos and pictures shared, the TLP chief reached mosque Rehmatul-il-Aalimeen in Lahore shortly after his release. A large number of supporters had gathered outside the party headquarters to welcome Rizvi.
The TLP chief had been under detention since April 11. His release is said to be a part of the recent agreement reached between the government and the TLP following the party’s recent sit-in.
Rizvi, son of the late firebrand cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, was arrested on charges of inciting his followers and party activists to take the law into their own hands after, according to him, the government had reneged on its promise to expel the French ambassador over the publication of blasphemous caricatures.
His detention was scheduled to end on July 10 in light of a decision of the review board of the Supreme Court. However, the office of the deputy commissioner issued a fresh notification extending the detention for another three months under Section 11-EEE (powers to arrest and detain suspected persons) of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
On August 2, Rizvi, through his uncle, filed another petition with the Lahore High Court (LHC), claiming the government extended his detention with “mala fide intention”. He said it implicated him in 14 criminal cases following his detention.
Through the petition, Rizvi’s uncle asked the court to declare the extension of the detention period illegal and order his release. Two weeks later, on August 17, the court sought replies from the authorities on the request.
Subsequently, on October 1, the court declared as illegal the detention of Rizvi. Following the court order, the Lahore deputy commissioner, Umer Sher Chattha, also issued orders for his release.
But on October 11, the Punjab government challenged in the Supreme Court the high court order declaring Rizvi’s detention as illegal and directing the provincial government to release him immediately.
The following day, the Supreme Court remanded the matter to the high court for a two-member special bench to decide after hearing arguments from both sides.
His release is the result of the deal with the government, contents of which are yet to be officially disclosed, after which the latter agreed to free 2,000 detained members of the movement, lifted the ban on the group and agreed to let it contest elections.
In return, the TLP agreed to shun the politics of violence and withdraw a demand to have France’s ambassador expelled over the publication of caricatures of Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H.) by a French magazine, negotiators said.
The TLP took to the streets in mid-October, kicking off weeks of protests and clashes that killed at least seven policemen, injured scores on both sides and blocked the GT Road highway.
