KARACHI: Protest rallies were taken out by two religious groups belonging to different schools of thought on M. A. Jinnah Road on Sunday on separate issues, which, besides sparking some tension, also created snarl-ups in the adjoining streets, officials and witnesses said.

The rallies were taken out by the Majlis-i-Wahdatul Muslimeen (MWM), and the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), a banned outfit, in the areas which overlapped each other’s route on M.A. Jinnah Road.

Police officials guarding them said it was a challenge for them to provide security to these two rallies.

The MWM protest was against the alleged targeted killing of members of the Shia community, terrorism in the country at large and against the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The ASWJ protested against the Indian atrocities in India held Kashmir and recent terrorist attacks in the holy city of Madina.

The MWM took out its rally in which a large number of women and children participated from Imambargah Shah Khorasan to Imambargah Ali Raza.

The route of the ASWJ rally was from Gurumandir to Taj Complex.

The administration had put up barricades in various streets connecting M. A. Jinnah Road to the rest of the city, which, eventually created a worst traffic jam and posed hardships to road users who, otherwise, were expecting smooth flow of traffic as it happens on Sundays.

The MWM leaders in their speeches condemned the government for its ‘failure’ to curb what they described as ‘incessant killings of Shia people’ in the country. They claimed that authorities were victimising people of their community in the name of the National Action Plan.

They blamed the government was supporting certain banned religious groups and announced to hold sit-ins across the country to press for acceptance of their demands.

The ASWJ protesters burnt the Indian flags and urged the government to send troops to India held Kashmir to free the scenic valley from the Indian occupation.

They said the ASWJ would send its 25,000 members to Kashmir to fight against India, if the Pakistani armed forces moved its steps towards the valley.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2016