Yesterday, about 25,000 protesters prayed for Qadri in Rawalpindi, a month after he was hanged for shooting Taseer, and then marched towards Islamabad's Red Zone, breaking barriers that had been erected.
Of the 25,000, about 3,000 supporters of Qadri continued their sit ins outside the Parliament House and other key government installations for the second day today agitating against the execution of Qadri who was hanged on February 29 for the 2011 murder of Taseer.
The media bore the brunt of the protesters' fury as they attacked media persons, injuring some of them and damaging their equipment. The protesters claimed that the media was not covering the event in an objective manner.
About 10,000 protesters led by Sunni Tehreek and Tehreek- i-Labbaik Ya Rasool religious groups entered the so-called high-security Red Zone after bloody clashes with police.
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The worsening law and order forced the government to deploy the army to control the situation.
The protesters are demanding that the government scrap any plans to amend the blasphemy laws, and execute all those convicted of blasphemy, including Aasia Bibi, the Christian woman who was sentenced to death in 2010 that triggered a global outcry.
Blasphemy is a sensitive issue in Islamic Pakistan, with even unproven allegations often triggering mob violence.
The controversial law was introduced by former military dictator Zia-ul Haq in 1980s and so far hundreds of people have been charged under it.
Meanwhile, residents of the capital and nearby Rawalpindi faced immense problems as mobile phone services were suspended in several areas while Internet was also slow.
Additional security checks were applied at various entry points leading to the capital and traffic was thin on roads.