LAHORE: Punjab government has suspended two officials of the Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) Lahore for ‘negligence of duty’ after a furor on social media over a statue of Allama Iqbal installed in the city’s Gulshan-i-Iqbal Park.
According to an order issued by the government, the park’s Deputy Director Horticulture, Shah Nawaz Wattoo and Assistant Director Horticulture Ghulam Sibtain, who lead the construction initiative, have been suspended with immediate effect.
READ MORE: Allama Iqbal’s sculpture receives flak over botched artwork
Earlier today, social media users expressed their ire on Twitter, sharing pictures of the statue which they said was not an accurate representation of the national poet. After the pictures of the statue went viral on social media, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar also took notice, directing officials to remove it.
He also asked the PHA director general to submit a report, saying: A concrete inquiry should be conducted to determine those responsible and action should be taken.
The chief minister said that the placing of the statue in the park was a sign of negligence of the authorities concerned, adding that “institutional action should be taken against them.
سوشل میڈیا پے وائرل ہونے کے بعد اقبال کے مجسمے کو اکھاڑا جا رہا ہے۔ pic.twitter.com/4jlRof0vbp
— Rai Shahnawaz (@RaiShahnawaz) February 2, 2021
