LAHORE: The city police on Friday remained on high alert and beefed up security arrangements to protect people from any untoward incident during Friday congregations across the provincial capital.
More than 6,000 police officials performed security duties outside mosques and other important places.
Police also claimed to have arrested several suspects and hardened criminals during a search operation late Thursday night across the city.
Police sources said that security arrangements had been augmented outside all city mosques, other religious places, markets, government installations and important buildings. Police high-ups also deputed specially trained snipers at the rooftops of buildings located adjacent to all important installations, mosques, markets, bazaars and other public places.
Capital City Police Officer Amin Wains has ordered the police to follow a comprehensive strategy for maintenance of security for Friday prayers and ensure snap checking. The CCPO further ordered them to use walkthrough gates for security purpose and asked divisional superintendents of police (SPs) to personally review duty of all police personnel deputed at important mosques, shrines and Imambargahs, besides ensuring continuous patrolling of officials in their respective areas.
The CCPO said that the security coordination committees consisting of local religious scholars and respectable of the area were also being formed at the circle and police station levels so that locals could contribute to security arrangements at mosques and Imambargahs in their respective areas.
Sources said that a massive search operation in the city was underway in collaboration with intelligence agencies of the country to nab terrorists and hardened criminals.
Sources further said that the police had raided different Afghan and Pakhtoon areas in the city, besides guesthouses, hotels near bus stands and the Railway Station. They said that most of those arrested were Pashto-speaking.
