Daska Wedding Stampede: Who Issued the NOC to Mr. Patlo? Two Dead, Influence Game and the Unregulated Social Media Economy

Stampede, People Climbing a Transformer to Enter the Stadium, and Playing with Lives

DASKA: Two people died and several were injured in a stampede at Faraz Sports Stadium, Sialkot, but the most horrifying scene was beyond the stampede itself. Driven by greed for prizes, people were risking their lives. To enter the stadium, they were climbing a large electricity transformer, where dozens of precious lives could have been lost in a moment. If the transformer had short-circuited or exploded, the Daska tragedy could have become many times bigger.

*Who Is This Sialkoti Boy Patlo?*

This Sialkoti boy Patlo, whose real name is Ansar Jutt, has become a leader of Pakistan’s new generation. The reason for his popularity is social media streaming, from which he earns crores of rupees on a monthly basis.

Although he is not educated and his poverty was such that he did not even have his own house, which is why he was sent to the United Arab Emirates for labour work. He had only been working there for a few months when the whole world went into lockdown and he started live streaming, where he quickly became popular due to his witty jokes and unique style.

But he is still not a technology expert; rather, a few months ago when crores of rupees were stolen from his account, it was revealed that he does not even know how to handle his own bank account. Despite this, the youth of Pakistan call him their leader.

To gauge his popularity, once even Wasim Akram himself was left worried when, in Sharjah Cricket Stadium, people preferred taking selfies with Mr. Patlo instead of Wasim Akram. That is, at the very ground where Wasim Akram played cricket his whole life, the spectators refused to even recognize him.

*The Modus Operandi of Wedding Publicity*

Mr. Patlo got married two days ago and got his publicity done for free across all social media, and the method was quite interesting.

Mr. Patlo had announced several months ago that on the occasion of his wedding, he would arrange marriages for 20 poor girls and also announced a Milan Party. Requesting full public participation, he said that at this Milan Party he would distribute one car, 50 motorcycles, Umrah tickets, and countless prizes of 50,000 rupees among the attendees. Even artists like “Maliko” and “Zeeshan Rokhri” also announced on social media that they would perform there.

To understand Mr. Patlo’s popularity and influence among the youth, just note that a few months ago, government ministers were forced to seek his help for a campaign against their political rival, Khan.

*October 31: A Crowd of 30,000 to 50,000 and Administrative Failure*

For his wedding, Mr. Patlo organized this public Milan Party at Faraz Sports Stadium, Sialkot, which was to start on the evening of October 31.

And so a crowd of about 30,000 to 50,000 people reached Faraz Sports Stadium, Sialkot, but there were no arrangements to handle so many people, nor was there any preparation by the administration for a possible situation.

As soon as the stadium gates opened, the public tried to get to the front, pushing and shoving, and a stampede broke out, which not only caused loss of life but also gave pickpockets a free hand.

*Cancellation of the Event and Three Reasons for the Crowd*

On the other hand, according to Mr. Patlo, he was injured last night after falling from stairs, so the event is being cancelled, and by then thousands of people from different cities across Pakistan had already reached the venue.

Thousands of people came to Mr. Patlo’s wedding Milan Party for three reasons:
1. The majority of the crowd came out of greed for prizes.
2. The crowd came in search of food.
3. Because Mr. Patlo had announced that whoever makes a video about his wedding, his followers would definitely like it, so people also came from other cities to increase their followers and get views, some of whom were not even poor.

People came at Mr. Patlo’s invitation not only from Daska or Sialkot but from all over the country and even from abroad, who said that they did not come out of greed for prizes but spent many times more than the expected prize money just to see one glimpse of Mr. Patlo live.

*The Core Question: Who Issued the NOC?*

The biggest question of this case is the same one that Mr. Patlo himself is raising: “I had obtained a proper NOC, installed four Pakistani flags, and played the national anthem.”

Minute Mirror’s questions:
1. Who issued the NOC for a private wedding in a public stadium?
2. What was the permitted crowd capacity in that NOC? Was it violated?
3. Where was the crowd control plan of the police, Rescue 1122, and the district administration?
4. Why was the Punjab government’s order banning the throwing of cash notes at weddings ignored?

*Khawaja Asif’s Bombshell: Who Is Saving Him?*

Federal Defence Minister Khawaja Asif wrote on X: “A TikToker named Patlo announced valuable prizes, including heavy cash, to gather the public. This whole drama was done for more earnings. Prizes were his investment, earning was from social media. The poverty of poor people of the area was mocked.”

And then the most important line: “The TikToker is absconding and making the law ineffective by using his influence.”

Asif also wrote that unbridled social media can prove to be poison for society and the state. These TikTokers are earning not crores but billions. Are tax laws regulating them?

*Patlo’s Tearful Defence from a Secret Location*

After going underground, Patlo made three claims while crying from a secret location:

1. *Alibi:* “I was not at the venue; I was injured after falling from stairs and was in hospital. Check the CCTV cameras. The FIR wrongly says I was in the stadium.”
2. *Intent:* “My only fault is that I wanted to distribute what I got in gifts to the poor, to get 20 girls married.”
3. *Appeal:* He appealed to Field Marshal Asim Munir and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif and said, “I have defended my army and my country for five years; now everyone has left me. My father is in his last stage, my newly-wedded wife has been crying for three days, and friends who came from abroad are missing.” In the video, he also expressed extreme hopelessness.

Legal experts say an emotional video has zero legal value; the decision will be based on evidence.

*Local Reaction: Where Is the Youth Heading?*

A retired school teacher, Ghulam Qadir, told Minute Mirror, “Where is the young generation heading and what kind of people are they following and idealizing?”

While a senior political leader from Sialkot, expressing astonishment over such a large gathering, termed such TikTokers as a threat to politicians and said that Federal Defence Minister Khawaja Asif’s tweet is a result of this same fear, because gathering such a large number of people in one place and a person with such a huge fan following, if he stands in an election tomorrow, could get his opponents’ securities forfeited.

*Final Analysis*

After Rajab Butt, this commotion at Mr. Patlo’s wedding has made two things clear:
First: When poor people get money, they start behaving like the nouveau riche.
Second: If you get rich very quickly in Pakistan and start flaunting it, certain characters arrive to collect their share.

Greed and avarice among people have been causing such accidents in countries like Pakistan and India, and the new generation, instead of working hard, is preferring cheap methods for social media followers or views.

Now an FIR has been registered against Mr. Patlo, but will he be back on his chair doing live streaming in a few days through Diyat and bargaining? Or will the law take its course?

These are the two questions: *Will he get forgiveness or will legal action be taken? And whose heads will Mr. Patlo take?*