Menace of VIP protocol back in the spotlight

LAHORE: The menace of VIP culture is present all over Pakistan; over the last decade babies have been born in rickshaws, daughters have died because the hospital doors were closed, all in the name of VIP protocol.

The latest incident that caught the media’s attention took place in Lahore on Friday, when a convoy with tinted windows accompanied by official protocol vehicles rammed into and forcefully stopped Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan’s sister Dr Uzma Khan’s vehicle.

According to the PTI chairman’s sister, the police squads accompanying the VIP forcefully stopped her car while a second squad car rammed into her vehicle. She claims the policemen then trained their automatic assault rifles upon her and her children.

While Imran Khan’s sister claimed the VIP protocol belonged to Maryam Nawaz Sharif, PMLN quarters and the prime minister’s daughter herself denied the allegation.

Maryam Nawaz took to Twitter and clarified that she was in fact in Islamabad when the untoward incident with Dr Uzma Khan took place in Lahore. The first daughter added that she only landed in Lahore at 4:30PM after the alleged incident took place.

Feel sorry for Mr. Khan's sister. Was in Isb when I got the news. Arrived in Lhr at 4:30. Liars should have some shame at least in Ramadan.

— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) July 1, 2016

The PTI chairman, who is currently in Karachi, also reacted to the incident, demanding to know why the common man was being treated like this for the prime minister's daughter. He asked on whose authority was Maryam Nawaz running the country and treating it like her personal estate.

Later in the evening, the story took a new twist when Asim Gujjar, outside whose residence in Gulberg the incident had taken place, claimed the vehicle and VIP protocol in question belonged to Sardar Yaqoub, the president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Asim Gujjar is said to be a manager at Bilawal House in Lahore.

Speaking to the media, Gujjar said Sardar Yaqoub was visiting his place to condole over the death of his mother.

Gujjar said Sardar Yaqoub's security personnel stopped Dr Uzma's vehicle, and that she followed the AJK president’s protocol inside the residence.

Gujjar claimed that Dr Uzma quarrelled with the security guards.

He said that he apologised to Dr Uzma over the incident, ensuring to compensate her for any damages to her vehicle and that his son accompanied her to his door to see her off.

Later, the CCPO and DIG Operations of police met with Asim Gujjar and inquired over the incident.

 Police sources said Dr Uzma was misguided about the motorcade belonging to Maryam Nawaz Sharif.

Meanwhile, PMLN quarters continued to reject the allegations, with Talal Chaudhry going as far as likening the accusation to the '35-punctures' allegation the PTI had hurled at the ruling PMLN.

It has become a habit that whatever happens allegations are levelled against Sharif family, he said. He asked Dr Uzma to apologise to Maryam Nawaz through the media over the allegations.