Lahore: Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Lahore, Ziauddin Ansari Advocate, has strongly demanded an immediate and complete ban on Basant, stating that the festival has lost its status as entertainment and has turned into a bloody and deadly activity posing a serious threat to public safety.While talking to the media outside General Hospital Lahore after visiting 37-year-old injured citizen Muhammad Yaseen, who was critically wounded by a kite string, Ziauddin Ansari said that within the last 18 hours, 2 people have lost their lives and more than 31 citizens have been injured in Basant-related incidents.He stated that allowing Basant celebrations in narrow streets and densely populated residential areas is equivalent to playing with the lives of innocent people. He urged the Chief Minister of Punjab to take immediate responsibility and impose a complete ban on what he termed “bloody Basant” to prevent further loss of human lives.Ziauddin Ansari Advocate added that if Basant was to be allowed at all, it should have been strictly restricted to open grounds or designated areas along the River Ravi. “Under the name of Basant, homes are being destroyed and families are losing their loved ones,” he said.He held the provincial government, particularly the Chief Minister of Punjab, responsible for all Basant-related deaths and injuries and demanded that FIRs should be registered for these incidents to ensure accountability.On this occasion, Qaiser Sharif, President Public Aid Committee Lahore, along with local leaders Hafiz Liaqat Shahid, Dr. Burhan, and Ghulam Hussain Tabassum, were also present.
