BADIN: A shutterdown strike was observed in Badin on Friday against police raid on a warehouse of a wholesaler and alleged recovery of gutka, mainpuri etc in big quantities in the action.

The area police registered an FIR (No.130/23) against the wholesaler, Abdul Ghani Abbasi, after seizing the stocks.

Leaders of the local businessman community reacted strongly to the raid and alleged recovery on late Thursday night. They gave a call for a shutterdown across Badin for Friday.

While most shops and markets remained closed owing to a weekly closure, observed on Fridays in the interior of Sindh, some protesting youths were seen forcing operators of open outlets and vending stalls to stop their business and commercial activities to join in the protest.

A group of traders also held a sit-in at Shahnawaz Chowk and raised slogans against the police. MPA Taj Mohammad Mallah also sat with the protesters for some time to express solidarity with the traders.

The protesting traders told him that the police broke open the warehouse and took away stocks of betel nut sacks and cartons.

The lawmaker assured them of a fair treatment but the area police appeared determined to “stop unlawful trade of all kinds of contraband items during their ongoing campaign”.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2023