Hundreds of flex banners bearing an Indian parliament ariansremark about acquiring Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Balochistan appeared nearthe National Assembly here a day after India reclassified Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) as a Union Territory. India on Monday asserted Kashmir was not abilateral issue but an internal one as it scrapped the autonomy and the specialstatus the region hitherto enjoyed. Pakistan has severely condemned this moveand urged the international community to take note.The banners were put up onlya few hundred metres away from the Pakistani Parliament and Prime MinisterImran Khan's residence here."Akhand Bharat" or Undivided Indiaenvisions Pakistan and Bangladesh as part of India. It has been one of the maingoals of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Hindu-nationalist organisationthat is also the ideological parent of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whichstormed to power for a second term in India's general election in May. Thebanners carry the comments of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut.

These banners were erected on electric poles on a busy roadin front of the National Press Club in sector F6, right in the heart ofIslamabad. They were reportedly put up before dawn and first spotted by thelocals as they were heading to work.Sajid Mahmood, a businessman, was among thefirst to spot them. He made a video and posted it on Twitter and Facebook. Thetwo-minute-long video went viral and prompted law-enforcement agencies here toremove the posters immediately.

Superintendent of Police (City) Amir Khan Niazi told thiscorrespondent the Capital Territory Police removed the banners and havelaunched an inquiry to find out who erected them. A spokesperson for ChiefCommissioner of Islamabad had said late on Tuesday that the media would bebriefed when the culprits were identified.

The news about the banners sparked anger among the residentsof Islamabad. They questioned how someone could manage to pull off such an actright in the heart of Islamabad.

"It's the failure of our law enforcement agencies, whocouldn't intercept those erecting anti-state posters in the heart ofIslamabad," said Sajid Ali, a resident of Sector F6 in Islamabad, wherethese banners were found.Islamabad District Magistrate took note of the lapseand issued a show-cause notice to Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad, askingwhy it took them five hours to remove the banners. When journalists reached thespot to take photographs of the banners, they were intercepted by the police.Police chased a few who managed to take footage of the banners and forced themto delete the videos. "Police subjected senior journalists with torturethat is unacceptable," the General Secretary of National Press ClubIslamabad said on Tuesday evening. Police authorities suspended two policemenfound guilty of thrashing the journalists.Sources told this correspondent thatthe Prime Minister's Office too has taken note of the matter and asked theauthorities to launch a thorough probe to trace the culprits.

Dawn newspaper earlier on Wednesday reported that policehave arrested a suspect from Blue Area who is believed to have been responsiblefor having placed the banners. Initial interrogation revealed that the suspectwas into printing business, and had received orders for those banners from aresident of Gujranwala.Police have sealed his printing press in Islamabad andshifted him to an undisclosed location for further interrogation.