Lahore, Oct 21 (PTI) Lahore Police on Thursday booked over 1,000 leaders and workers of the banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) and arrested many of them under terrorism, kidnapping and other charges after they staged sit-ins across Pakistan demanding the release of their leader.

Separately, the Punjab police also arrested dozens of TLP activists from different parts of the province.

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The TLP workers have been holding a sit-in outside its headquarters in Yateem Khana Lahore since late on Wednesday night to protest against the Imran Khan government for not releasing their party chief Saad Hussain Rizvi.

The TLP has announced a long march on Islamabad on Friday to protest against the arrest of ‘hundreds' of its workers and Rizvi.

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Throughout the day on Thursday tension prevailed in different parts of Lahore as a heavy contingent of the police surrounded the TLP headquarters, however, police did not make an effort to clear the main Multan Road from the protesters.

Mobile phone and internet service remained suspended in different areas of the city to handle the TLP protest.

The TLP workers also allegedly damaged the Orange Line Train service terminal on Ferozpur Road and detained its eight employees for a while.

“Police have booked over 1,000 leaders and workers of TLP and arrested a number of them under terrorism, kidnapping, blocking roads, hooliganism, riot and other charges in four separate FIRs,” police officer concerned Muhammad Afzal told PTI. He said the law enforcement agencies will not allow the banned outfit to take law into its hands.

Inspector-General of Police, Punjab Rao Sardar Ali Khan has approved a massive crackdown against the TLP for creating a law and order situation in the province.

Saad Hussain Rizvi has been detained by the Punjab government since April last under the maintenance of public order (MPO) following TLP's protest against the blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad published in France and its demand that the French ambassador be sent home and import of goods from that country banned.

Subsequently, the TLP agreed to call off protests across the country on the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government assurance that it would present a resolution on the expulsion of the French ambassador in the National Assembly.

However, the government had called the National Assembly session to debate the French envoy's expulsion and before a vote could take place on the resolution, the speaker announced the formation of a special committee to discuss the matter and asked the government and the opposition to engage with each other to develop consensus on the issue. No meeting of this special committee has been held since April.

A member of TLP's Majalis-i-Shura (central executive committee) Syed Afzaal Hussain Shah on Thursday announced a ‘new series of protests' including the long march on the capital on Friday if the government fails to release Rizvi and its other detained activists.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)