Lahore: The Punjab Home Department has enforced Section 144 across the province until October 15 in response to significant security threats to public peace and safety. According to Directorate General Public Relation – Govt of Punjab, the directive prohibits assemblies, processions, and gatherings of five or more individuals in public spaces, roads, and open areas. The carrying and display of weapons in public are also banned, alongside inciting participation in unlawful gatherings.

The Punjab Home Department’s notification exempts wedding ceremonies, funeral prayers, burials, mosques, and other places of worship from these restrictions. Courts, government institutions, and authorized events, as well as personnel from law enforcement, intelligence, and security agencies performing official duties, remain unaffected by the order. Law enforcement and intelligence agencies have reportedly received alerts about potential threats, with intelligence indicating plans by terrorist organizations to target public gatherings. In light of these concerns, immediate preventive measures have been requested to maintain law and order. The Secretary Home has thus imposed a ban on public gatherings under Section 144(6) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, emphasizing the protection of public life and property as the government’s primary concern.