WEB DESK: The Punjab government is preparing to impose a fresh ban on the rightwing Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) after clashes during its attempted march on Islamabad left 48 policemen injured and dozens of vehicles torched.

The TLP had announced plans to stage a sit-in outside the US Embassy in Islamabad to express solidarity with Palestinians. Security forces blocked the march in Muridke, where violent confrontations erupted. The six-hour operation, launched around 3am, ended with mass arrests and the suspension of internet services across affected areas. Reports suggested that party chief Saad Rizvi was injured and had gone underground.

In response, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and her law-and-order team decided to place TLP on the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act, curtailing its ability to operate. Under the proposed ban, the group’s assets and properties would be seized by the Auqaf Department, its bank accounts frozen, and its social media presence dismantled. Posters, banners, and other publicity material linked to the group would also be banned.

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Alongside this, the Punjab government is enforcing the Loudspeaker Act to curb provocative speeches and noise pollution. Citizens have been given one month to surrender illegal arms, with punishments for violations raised to 14 years imprisonment and fines of up to Rs2 million.

This is not the first time the party faces proscription. In 2021, TLP was briefly banned after violent nationwide protests. The ban was lifted after eight months, paving the way for its return as the third-largest political force in Punjab in the general elections.