Karachi’s main arteries blocked as sit-ins against Parachinar killings continue
The religiopolitical Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) on Thursday night expanded its ongoing sit-in across the metropolis against the Parachinar killings by blocking almost all main arteries, according to officials, witnesses, and organisers.
The demonstrators are protesting an incident where two people were killed and later decapitated after being waylaid on their way towards Parachinar in the Bagan area of Kurram.
The MWM staged sit-ins on MA Jinnah Road and Abbas Town on Abul Hasan Ispahani Road over the week to show solidarity with the heirs of the victims, whilst also protesting the violent clashes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kurram area, which have claimed over 100 lives since late November.
As a result of the expanded protest, commuters have been facing traffic problems as sit-ins were organised on the main Sharea Faisal, on the main National Highway in Malir-15, University Road and other major arteries.
Karachi Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Traffic Police Ahmed Nawaz Cheema told Dawn.com that, “citizens faced difficulties on Thursday night due to the sit-ins, with international passengers missing their flights as both tracks of Sharea Faisal near the airport were blocked.
On Friday, he said that “sit-ins were also held on Sharea Pakistan and in Nazimabad, Surjani Town, Sohrab Goth and Gulistan-i-Jauhar causing inconveniences to the citizens.”
Cheema said that police have provided alternative arrangements and routes to the citizens to avoid being stuck in traffic jams. He added that traffic policemen have been deployed on both day and night shifts to ensure the smooth flow of traffic.
At around 9:40pm, Karachi Traffic Police released an update stating that traffic on Nishtar Road, Lasbela Chowk, Albela Chowk and the Juman Shah Bukhari Signal was moving slowly due to the sit-ins in Nazimabad.
“Traffic police are present and directing traffic,” the statement read.
Sit-ins to continue until protests in KP end
Meanwhile, MWM central leader Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi said in a press conference on Friday night that “for the last 90 days, roads in Parachinar are closed, causing a shortage of essential goods and medicines.
“We have staged peaceful sit-ins in Karachi,” he stated, adding that a jirga was being hosted in Parachinar. “If it (the Jirga) reaches any conclusion, we will share the relevant information,” he said.
Naqvi said there was no “Shia-Sunni conflict” in Parachinar, questioning who portrayed it as a sectarian issue.
He added that the government was aware of those involved in the killings. “The KP Chief Minister and local administration were incompetent,” Naqvi stated.
He said if there were any “problems” caused by the sit-ins, it was the responsibility of the government to resolve them.
“Is Shehbaz Sharif the prime minister of Islamabad and Lahore only?” he asked, stating that the government could not put responsibility for the Parachinar situation squarely on the KP government.
“The government established its writ in Islamabad but it could not get roads opened in Parachinar,” said the MWM leader.
Naqvi announced that the MWM would continue sit-ins until the people of Parachinar ended their protest in KP.