KARACHI, Oct 7: Tension prevailed in many localities of the city on Tuesday, where markets remained closed and vehicular traffic thin.

In localities such as Nagan Chowrangi, North Karachi, New Karachi, Shadman Town, Buffer Zone, North Nazimabad and Nazimabad business activities remained suspended throughout the day.

Reports of closure of shops were also received from Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Shah Faisal Colony, and Khadda Market in Lyari, where youths forced shopkeepers to shut their business.

The main trouble spots remained Nagan Chowrangi, where a religious congregation was organized to protest against the killing of Millat-i-Islamia chief Maulana Azam Tariq and his four associates in Islamabad. A sizable number of people turned up at the meeting. Some youths turned violent, setting old tyres on fire on the main road at Nagan Chowrangi.

Heavy contingents of the police and the Rangers were deployed to keep peace and prevent untoward incidents from happening.

The police closed the main road at the Sakhi Hasan roundabout and diverted the traffic to alternative routes. Similarly, the traffic coming from New Karachi was also diverted to alternative routes.

The public transport bound for North Karachi had been thin since morning and almost went off the road by the evening. People who left their workplaces for home, especially those using public transport, suffered hardship.

Tension heightened across the city as a variety of rumours kept on travelling during the day.

Attendance in most private and public schools remained thin. In many schools pupils were sent home before the usual closure timings. School managements in various schools called the school van operators earlier and asked them to drop children at their homes.

In a press release issued by the police, ASP Shahid Hamid said: “The basic threat perception in this scenario is that in retaliation to the murder of Maulana Azam Tariq, there may be a wave of sectarian violence or terrorist acts targeting Shiites.”

He said the security presence around all key locations, including foreign missions such as the US consulate, British deputy high commission, German consulate and the Iranian consulate, had been increased.

PROTEST MEETING: Speaking at a big protest meeting at Jamia Siddiq-i-Akbar at Nagan Chowrangi, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Nadeem, a leader of the Millat-i-Islamia, warned the government that a protest demonstration would be held at Lasbella Chowk on Thursday if the killers of Maulana Azam Tariq were not arrested within two days.