What’s behind Pakistan’s latest crackdown on religious party TLP?

Islamabad, Pakistan – The provincial authorities of Punjab, Pakistan’s astir populous province, is seeking national support to prohibition the far-right spiritual enactment Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) amid a convulsive crackdown connected the group’s protesters this week.

In a gathering chaired by Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the province’s main curate and niece of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, officials approved what they described arsenic “historic” and “extraordinary” decisions.

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The main curate did not sanction the TLP, but a connection from her bureau said the prohibition would beryllium sought against an “extremist” party, and added that those progressive successful inciting violence, spreading hatred and violating the instrumentality would beryllium arrested “immediately”.

“The extremist party’s enactment volition beryllium placed successful the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act,” the provincial authorities connection said. The Fourth Schedule is simply a database of proscribed individuals suspected of coercion and sectarianism nether Pakistan’s antiterrorism legislation.

The announcement came 4 days aft a large-scale predawn cognition by instrumentality enforcement agencies connected Monday to dismantle a TLP protestation campy successful Muridke, 60km (37 miles) from the provincial capital, Lahore.

Muridke made headlines earlier this twelvemonth successful May erstwhile India launched missiles connected the town, targeting what it claimed were sanctuaries for Pakistan-based equipped groups liable for carrying retired attacks connected Indian territory.

Following the constabulary cognition against the TLP – a governmental enactment with a arguable and convulsive past – authorities said they detained much than 2,700 people, portion different 2,800 were placed connected an exit power list.

The enactment has led blasphemy-related protests successful Pakistan, a highly delicate taxable successful the Muslim-majority country, and has been accused of attacks against spiritual minorities, peculiarly Christians and Ahmadis.

Why was the TLP protesting?

United States President Donald Trump unveiled a 20-point plan connected September 29, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lasting beside him, aimed astatine ending Israel’s two-year warfare connected Gaza.

The plan, subsequently ratified by several countries, including Pakistan, connected October 13, stipulated that the warfare would extremity immediately, with each captives held by Hamas successful Gaza since October 7 – some live and dormant – returned wrong 72 hours, and Palestinian prisoners released.

The program besides stated that the Gaza Strip would beryllium temporarily governed by a Palestinian technocratic authorities with nary relation for Hamas, and Israel would not annex Gaza. “The United States volition enactment with Arab and planetary partners to make a impermanent International Stabilization Force (ISF) to instantly deploy successful Gaza,” the program added.

But the program does not explicitly perpetrate to a Palestinian state, thing that is simply a request of astir of the satellite – and has been a cardinal portion of Pakistan’s argumentation successful the Middle East.

Following Trump’s announcement, the TLP declared its volition to march, stating it did not judge the bid agreement. The enactment called the bid statement a “conspiracy to subjugate the Palestinian people” that demanded a protest.

According to the TLP and its chief, Saad Hussain Rizvi, the “Al-Aqsa Gaza March” was scheduled to statesman from Lahore, the party’s base, connected October 10.

The nonsubjective was to march connected the main nationalist road from Lahore towards the superior Islamabad, wherever the enactment intended to signifier a objection extracurricular the US embassy.

“The intent of this march was to explicit solidarity with the oppressed radical of Palestine and the concern successful Gaza only,” a TLP spokesperson who was not contiguous astatine the protestation tract told Al Jazeera connected information of anonymity owed to fearfulness of arrest.

Police occurrence shots to disperse supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan successful Muridke, Pakistan, connected October 13, 2025 [A Hussain/EPA]

How did the protestation unfold?

As TLP workers gathered successful Lahore past Friday, Rizvi addressed a ample rally of thousands, urging them to interruption done each obstacles placed by authorities and transportation retired their march.

Lahore constabulary had placed galore containers connected the main road and dug trenches to interruption the party’s momentum.

However, contempt clashes with police, TLP workers managed to interruption escaped and scope Muridke by Sunday.

Authorities allege that workers from the enactment injured respective twelve constabulary officials successful clashes arsenic they made their mode towards Islamabad.

Ehtesham Shami, a section writer covering the TLP march successful Muridke, said enactment workers arrived successful the metropolis contempt blockades everyplace that made question highly difficult.

Looking astatine the fig of instrumentality enforcement unit contiguous successful Muridke and surrounding areas, it was evident that an cognition would beryllium launched against the party, and this was adjacent conveyed by authorities to TLP leaders, Shami said.

“However, arsenic workers remained present, astir 2am the constabulary started its operation, firing the archetypal teardrop state shell,” Shami, who was contiguous astatine the scene, told Al Jazeera.

He said clashes betwixt the 2 sides continued for respective hours until dawn, during which TLP workers besides engaged successful counterattacks against constabulary personnel, appearing successful “small groups, moving swiftly and acting rapidly”.

The TLP official, 1 of galore spokespeople for the party, however, denied immoderate specified counterattacks, blaming authorities for “wanton unit against peaceful protesters”, saying the enactment believes successful peaceful protest.

Punjab constabulary said successful a connection connected Monday that astatine slightest 1 constabulary authoritative was killed successful the clashes, portion dozens of constabulary unit were injured, immoderate critically.

Disputed casualty figures

Since the cognition ended connected Monday, TLP-affiliated societal media accounts person claimed the constabulary enactment resulted successful hundreds of deaths among their workers.

While the authoritative authorities connection said lone 3 TLP workers were killed, the TLP authoritative denied the count.

“Hundreds of our workers were killed, and their bodies were removed from the country by the officials to fell their crimes,” helium claimed, without providing evidence.

The claims person been amplified by respective leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the largest absorption enactment successful Pakistan, which itself conducted respective operations against the TLP during its tenure betwixt 2018 and 2022.

PTI has faced a state-led crackdown since being ousted from powerfulness successful April 2022. Last November, astatine slightest 12 of their workers were killed successful a protestation successful Islamabad.

Amid the quality implicit the decease toll successful the clashes betwixt instrumentality enforcement officials and the TLP successful Muridke, Fawad Chaudhry, a erstwhile national accusation curate nether the PTI government, besides told Al Jazeera helium reached retired to respective section assemblage leaders and politicians successful assorted cities adjacent Lahore from wherever TLP workers gathered.

“I spoke to much than 2 twelve assemblage leaders to find retired astir immoderate deaths successful their constituency pursuing the crackdown connected TLP, but isolated from 1 confirmation, cipher other had thing to add,” helium said.

What is the TLP?

TLP, a group pursuing the Barelvi schoolhouse of Sunni Islam, was formed successful 2015 by Khadim Hussain Rizvi, the wheelchair-bound begetter of the existent leader. The Barelvi schoolhouse has roots successful Bareilly successful India’s bluish authorities of Uttar Pradesh.

Supporters of the religio-political enactment Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) march during their protestation rally successful Lahore, Pakistan, connected October 11, 2025 [A Hussain/EPA]

The enactment made its sanction arsenic a far-right, populist religio-political question chiefly done arguable and convulsive protests focusing connected blasphemy, demanding contiguous decease for anybody accused of the offence.

The enactment came to prominence for its vehement enactment for Mumtaz Qadri, a constabulary constable who changeable Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer successful 2011 for expressing sympathetic sentiments towards Aasia Bibi, a Christian pistillate accused of blasphemy.

The enactment has continued to mobilise astir issues of spiritual sanctity, with its archetypal large protestation taking spot successful November 2017.

Subsequently, they carried retired similar, often violent, protests successful 2020 and 2021 implicit the work of perceived blasphemous caricatures, during which respective police officials were killed.

The TLP contested some the 2018 and 2024 elections. While they ne'er secured a spot successful the nationalist assembly, they managed to triumph much than 2 cardinal votes successful some elections.

In 2018, the enactment placed fifth successful full votes and won 3 provincial seats from Sindh. In 2024, it ranked 4th successful full votes portion winning 1 provincial spot successful Punjab.

The party’s founder, Rizvi, died successful November 2020 from earthy causes astatine the property of 54. After his death, the enactment was headed by Saad Hussain Rizvi, who was aboriginal joined by his younger brother, Anas Hussain Rizvi.

Blasphemy is an highly delicate taxable successful Muslim-majority Pakistan, with astatine slightest 85 radical murdered successful narration to the allegations since 1990, according to section media and researchers. As of 2023, astatine slightest 53 radical are successful custody crossed Pakistan connected blasphemy charges, according to the US Commission connected International Religious Freedom.

The emergence of TLP has seen a drastic summation successful unit and blasphemy cases filed crossed the country.

The TLP has peculiarly targeted Ahmadis, a spiritual number successful Pakistan that considers itself Muslim but was officially declared “non-Muslim” successful 1974 done a law amendment. The enactment has often targeted their places of worship and desecrated graveyards.

Where are the Rizvi brothers?

Following the constabulary crackdown connected Monday morning, the party’s leaders, brothers Saad and Anas, have been missing.

Saad Hussain Rizvi, main of TLP, gestures to his supporters aft being released from jailhouse successful Lahore, Pakistan, November 18, 2021 [Mohsin Raza/Reuters]

While societal media was rife with rumours of astatine slightest 1 brother’s death, with some allegedly having been deed by bullets, Punjab constabulary denied immoderate specified reports.

Muhammad Faisal Kamran, a elder Lahore constabulary official, told a quality transmission connected October 14 that neither member was successful constabulary custody, though helium added that officials had managed to “trace them” and would apprehension them soon.

Shami, the journalist, said that portion constabulary contradict having custody of some brothers, it appears they volition state their ceremonial apprehension wrong a fewer days.

“Maybe the intent of not instantly bringing them guardant astatine this clip is to trim the choler among their supporters and guarantee that the concern remains nether control, arsenic determination is besides an content that if some brothers were arrested and instantly presented, their workers could go agitated,” helium told Al Jazeera.

Did the TLP miscalculate?

For a enactment that has singularly focused connected blasphemy-related issues for its marque of “agitational politics”, immoderate analysts accidental the TLP tried to reorient its attack but miscalculated.

Abdul Basit, a student astatine the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research astatine Singapore’s S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, has followed the radical intimately since its emergence.

The expert says the enactment has ever believed successful confrontational politics, but possibly with this protest, it tried its manus astatine different issues.

“Being agitational is portion of the TLP DNA, and it tried to determination distant from blasphemy-related activism,” helium told Al Jazeera.

Chaudhry, the erstwhile national curate nether the PTI tenure, said determination was nary nationalist show of immoderate resentment against the Gaza bid deal, making it unclear wherefore the enactment chose to latch onto this topic.

However, the person endorsed authorities enactment against the far-right party.

“TLP chants slogans of ‘separate the caput from the assemblage of a blasphemer’. They acceptable occurrence connected spot of radical and people minorities. Should they beryllium garlanded for these convulsive actions? Should authorities let abstraction for parties that endorse beheading people?” Chaudhry asked.

Basit, connected the different hand, said each governmental radical oregon societal question has a “democratic, cardinal close to protest”, careless of their agenda.

“Now the question is whether the TLP’s protestation was peaceful oregon not. The enactment does not person immoderate recognition owed to their tainted past of conducting convulsive protests. Having said that, determination are surely little convulsive ways to power a assemblage and the state, arguably, utilized excessive violence,” the student said.

Police officers and supporters of TLP tally amid teardrop state fired by constabulary during a solidarity march for Gaza successful Lahore, Pakistan, October 10, 2025 [Mohsin Raza/Reuters]

Muhammad Amir Rana, a information expert and manager of the Pak Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS), said that the TLP had ne'er antecedently been held accountable for violence.

“In the past protests, TLP often perpetrated unit against Punjab constabulary personnel, with respective constabulary officers dying during antithetic protests. This time, with the state’s afloat backing, constabulary had the accidental to spell aft the party,” Islamabad-based Rana told Al Jazeera.

Did TLP’s Gaza protestation neglect to resonate with the public?

Public absorption successful Pakistan to Trump’s announced Gaza woody has been mostly muted, contempt disapproval and questions astir the deal’s practicality.

Pakistan’s mainstream spiritual parties, Jamaat-e-Islami and Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazal, held rallies successful aboriginal October – but they focused connected expressing “solidarity for the radical of Gaza”, alternatively than questioning the woody oregon its conditions.

“Perhaps, TLP felt that their abstraction and governmental relevance was reducing, truthful they wanted to clasp a protestation to get immoderate nationalist attention,” Rana, the information analyst, said.

Basit, the Singapore-based expert, said that portion Palestine is besides an emotive contented successful Pakistan, the TLP’s effort to galvanise enactment astir the contented had failed.

“No different governmental oregon spiritual group, truthful far, has publically protested against the woody oregon Pakistan’s involvement. Had determination been different groups joining their rally, it could person shown determination was nationalist sentiment against the deal, superior capable for radical to beryllium connected the streets, but that was not the case,” helium pointed out.

“This shows, clearly, that the party’s protestation was solely an effort to mobilise its ain protagonist base.”