The shopkeepers of Teen Hatti Flower Market staged a protest demonstration on Tuesday against the extortion mafia. Sources said, hundreds of shopkeepers gathered on Sharah-e-Pakistan where they burnt tyres, pelted stones at vehicles and chanted slogans against the Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs).
The demonstrators questioned the performance of the LEAs saying that they had completely failed in maintaining peace in the city. They said that the businessmen, who were already facing serious financial crisis due to what they called unfriendly government polices, were now facing life threats from the criminal elements. They regretted that the concerned authorities were not paying any heed to the matter.
They said that the extortionists were openly distributing slips and threatening the shopkeepers of dire consequences in case of non-payment. They said the extortionists had recently opened firing on a shop when the owner refused to pay Rs 0.5 million. Despite several complaints, no steps had been taken to protect the shopkeepers of the city's largest flower market, they added. Later, heavy contingent of police and rangers rushed to the spot and assured the traders of their full support. Meanwhile, police officials assured to provide security to the shopkeepers to avert such incidents in future.
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