The Karachi Commissioner issued a notification to impose Section 144 for a 48-hour period starting on December 31, it emerged on Sunday.

New Year’s Eve in Karachi sees citizens performing aerial gunfire and using fireworks which have caused injury in the past.

On December 31, 2023, then-Commissioner Muhammad Saleem Rajput imposed Section 144 “to safeguard the people of the city during New Year’s celebrations”.

According to a notification, the commissioner while exercising powers delegated by the provincial home department imposed the ban from December 31 to January 1, 2024.

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code is a legal provision that empowers district administrations to prohibit an assembly of four or more people in an area for a limited period.

According to the notification dated December 24 — a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi has imposed the ban based on information that “a large number of youngsters from different areas of the city will move to Seaview on motorcycles and cars for the celebrations of New Year”.

The notification adds that the presence of these people creates traffic jams and inconveniences “the residents of the area”.

South Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) requested the ban on displaying firearms, aerial firing and the use of fireworks to “safeguard the precious lives of the citizens”.

The commissioner noted that on New Year’s Eve, “some individuals get involved in aerial firing that may cause untoward incidents/loss of human lives”.

A “complete ban on carrying/display of arms, aerial firing and use of firecrackers on New Year’s Eve-2025” was notified, with the ban applicable within the local limits of Karachi from December 31 to January 1, 2025.

Opinion

In fight mode

In fight mode

The bouts between political parties and establishment take a toll on country far more than they do on political parties.

Editorial

Meltdown
08 Apr, 2025

Meltdown

A full-blown trade war is upon us as the era of the rules-based, multilateral trading order is nearly over.
Settling differences
08 Apr, 2025

Settling differences

SOMETHING is stirring within the PTI. Some of its older hands are back in the limelight, ostensibly to make another...
Glacial ingenuity
08 Apr, 2025

Glacial ingenuity

NECESSITY is indeed the mother of invention, as witnessed in Gilgit-Baltistan. In these areas, where climate change...
Going dry
Updated 07 Apr, 2025

Going dry

Authorities should refrain from undertaking any water scheme that infringes on rights of any federating unit to avoid more controversies.
Afghan return
07 Apr, 2025

Afghan return

AS expected, the government of Pakistan is moving ahead with its plan to forcibly repatriate Afghan Citizenship Card...
Hurting women
07 Apr, 2025

Hurting women

MONTH after month, the figures of crimes against women in the country indicate that our society is close to...