KARACHI: The protests that broke out hours after the deadly Friday attack on an Imambargah in Shikarpur expanded on Saturday to around half a dozen areas in the city where life remained almost completely suspended on the ‘peaceful strike’ call which was supported by several religious and political parties as well as traders and lawyers associations.

The national flag flew at half mast on government buildings and all the ceremonies and functions scheduled for the day were postponed following a Sindh government announcement to this effect, said a spokesman for CM House.

Like commercial, trade and transport activities, legal proceedings also remained suspended at the subordinate judiciary and special courts as a province-wide boycott of courts was observed on the Sindh Bar Council appeal to condemn the killing of nearly 55 people, including children, in the bomb attack on the Imambargah in Shikarpur.

The strike and sit-ins were called off by the Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen in the afternoon following the funeral in absentia at the Numaish traffic intersection.

Major business centres and most fuel stations were closed while public transport and private vehicles stayed off the roads.

Anger ran high from Karachi to Kashmore, where Shia organisations took out protest rallies, staged sits-in and held press conferences to condemn the Friday attack.

The Karachi Tajir Ittehad — a common platform of 350 wholesale and retail markets across the city — supported the strike call given by the Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen, Jaffria Alliance and Shia Ulema Council to show solidarity with the families of the victims.

In Karachi, the MWM spokesman said, sit-ins were organised at the Numaish traffic intersection, Shahrah-i-Pakistan near Incholi, Malir 15 on National Highway, Star Gate on Sharea Faisal, Five Star Chowrangi in North Nazimabad and Korangi.

Earlier, hundreds of cases fixed at city courts, district courts in Malir, antiterrorism courts, control of narcotic substances courts, accountability courts, anti-corruption courts and banking courts were not taken up for hearing since the jail authorities did not shift the undertrial prisoners to courts.

While traffic on roads leading to the intersections remained suspended, people travelling to the airport were diverted from Sharea Faisal to Shah Faisal Colony. Similarly, people moving to M.A. Jinnah Road from Karachi Central district were allowed to use the alternative route of Preedy Street.

The strike remained largely peaceful except two early morning arson attacks on Sharea Faisal where a trailer and a minibus were destroyed.

“A minibus (JTA-6533) was set on fire near Chhota Gate on Sharea Faisal at around 9am,” said an official at the central fire office. Two fire tenders rushed to the spot but the vehicle had been destroyed by then, he said.

However, he said, timely intervention by the fire tenders saved a trailer parked at some distance from complete destruction though its front side was damaged in the fire.

Outside the Karachi Press Club, a large number of people attended a protest demonstration organised by the Shia Ulema Council.

The protesters chanted slogans against terrorism and demanded arrest of the attackers. They were addressed by senior leaders of the SUC including Allama Shabbir Hasan Muswi, Allama Jafar Subhani, Maulana Fayyaz Hussain Mutehri, S.M. Naqi and Maulana Mohammad Hussain.

“Our protest would continue across the country on Sunday. The Karachi protest would be organised in the Malir area,” said the council spokesman.

Funeral

Funeral prayers in absentia were offered by the participants in the sit-ins followed by speeches by the leaders who announced calling off the strike and sit-in.

They appreciated the political parties, traders and Karachiites who supported their call and came up with strong protest against the terror attack.

“People of Karachi as well as from all other parts of Sindh have proved that they believe in harmony,” said Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi of the MWM while talking to reporters at the Numaish sit-in after he addressed a majlis and attended the funeral in absentia.

“We are thankful to all those who supported the strike call and conveyed strong message to terrorists as well as the government that the people don’t believe it sectarianism and hatred. We request the traders and transporters to resume their business as we are calling off strike and protest sit-in.”

Speaking at a general body meeting of the Karachi Bar Association held at the Shuhada-i-Punjab Hall of the city courts, representatives of the legal fraternity strongly condemned the bomb attack on the Imambargah and asked the government to arrest the culprits and bring them to justice.

While the strike was called off in the afternoon, traffic remained thin till evening and major business centres remained closed but local markets in residential areas resumed regular business in the evening.

Published in Dawn February 1st, 2015

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