Pak bans 4 outfits for 'involvement' in sectarian violence

Pakistani authorities have banned four organisations, including a front for the Sipah-e-Sahaba, on charges of involvement in promoting sectarianism and ethnic violence.

The Interior Ministry has issued a notification banning the People's Aman Committee, Shia Talba Action Committee, Tanzeem Naujawanan Ahl-e-Sunnat of Gilgit-Baltistan and Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat, a front for the proscribed Sipah-e-Sahaba.

The notification was sent to all four provinces and authorities in Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, officials said.

The Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) was formed after the government banned the Sipah-e-Sahaba for its involvement in sectarian violence across the country.

The ASWJ is a key player in the Defa-e-Pakistan Council, an alliance of over 40 hardline and extremist groups cobbled together by Lashkar-e-Toiba founder Hafiz Mohammad Saeed.

The People's Aman Committee is active in Karachi, especially in Liyari area and has been linked to ethnic and political violence and target killings.

The Shia Talba Action Committee and Tanzeem Naujawanan Ahl-e-Sunnat were recently established in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Both groups have been accused of involvement in sectarian violence.
Reports said most members of the Defa-e-Pakistan Council have decided to protest the ban on the Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat.