ISLAMABAD, AUG 28 (DNA) — Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), said that due to the inflated electricity bills, citizens and traders are protesting in Islamabad like the rest of the country.

He stressed that instead of being harsh with the protestors, police should deal with them with a soft approach and try to keep them peaceful so that the situation in the federal capital remains undisturbed and business activities are not affected.

He said this while talking to Syed Ishtiaq Hussain Shah, SHO Sumbal Police Station (G-13) and Muhammad Saleem Raza, SHO Shams Colony Police Station (H-13) during their visit to ICCI.

Ahsan Bakhtawari said that traders always want to remain peaceful because their business can develop better only in an environment of peace and tranquillity, but the massive hike in electricity bills has angered the people and traders are also feeling the heat of these heavy bills. However, hoped that the SHOs of all the police stations in Islamabad would avoid any harshness on the protestors and try their best to keep them peaceful with a gentle attitude.

He also demanded the government to take war-footing steps to provide adequate relief to the people in electricity bills in order to prevent the situation from getting out of control in the country. He assured the two SHOs that ICCI will cooperate with the police in its efforts to provide better security to the traders.

Speaking on the occasion, Syed Ishtiaq Hussain Shah, SHO of Sumbal Police Station (G-13) and Muhammad Saleem Raza, SHO Shams Colony Police Station (H-13) assured that they would try their best to provide a safe environment for the business activities to flourish.

They said that the purpose of their visit to ICCI was to consult with the leadership of the Chamber to deal with the prevailing situation triggered by inflated electricity bills so that the law and order in the city can be further improved. They also apprised the leadership of ICCI of their strategy to control crimes and provide security to the citizens including traders within the limits of their respective police stations and welcomed the suggestions of ICCI to make these efforts more effective.

Former President ICCI and Secretary General of UBG Pakistan Zafar Bakhtawari, Saifur Rahman Khan, Raja Imtiaz, Shahid Zaman Shinwari, Khalid Chaudhry, Aslam Khokhar, Abid Khan, Maqsood Tabish, Babar Chaudhry and others were also present on the occasion. — DNA