KARACHI: The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) on Thursday warned that the protest would intensify against growing fatal accidents caused by unchecked movement of heavy vehicles despite enforcement of the multi-billion-rupee e-challan project, which the party alleged mostly targeting law-abiding Karachiites for flimsiest of traffic violations.

The party also announced a sit-in on the Numaish intersection on Saturday (tomorrow) against the “tanker and dumper truck mafia” mostly involved in the accidents and the “unjust e-challans”.

The announcement came from the party’s Karachi chief Monem Zafar Khan, who held a press conference outside the Sindh police headquarters on I.I. Chundrigarh Road.

He severely criticised “increasing number of accidents involving heavy vehicles, loss of precious lives, and unjustified e-challans”.

The JI leader urged the people suffering from the problems in Karachi to participate in large numbers and join the “Haq Do Karachi Movement”.

He said the struggle and resistance for the legitimate rights of Karachi’s 35 million citizens and for resolving the city’s pressing issues would continue with full force.

“We completely reject the non-transparent and anti-public e-challan system. How many injured citizens have been treated under the Amal Umer Act?” he questioned referring to the Sindh Injured Persons Compulsory Medical Treatment (Amal Umer) Act 2019 passed by the Sindh Assembly.

“The broken roads, overflowing gutters, and collapsed infrastructure throughout the city are only adding to the public’s miseries. Due to the incompetence and corruption of the PPP government, the people of Karachi are suffering. The Sindh government is highly active in issuing e-challans but has completely failed to control crime.”

The JI leader asked the DIG Traffic about the number of properly working traffic signals and zebra crossings in Karachi and said that if issues related to signals and roads were to be solved merely by fining motorcyclists, then what role would remain for the traffic police.

Over the past 11 months, he said, 41,000 motorcycles and 16,000 mobile phones were snatched while 84 citizens were killed in armed robberies, and 244 citizens lost their lives due to heavy vehicles.

“What kind of governance is this where criminals roam freely, while heavy fines are imposed on citizens through cameras? The Sindh government should tell how many criminals have been arrested in these incidents.”

He said the DIG Traffic repeatedly announced that trackers and sensors would be installed on heavy vehicles — but in the over 250 accidents that have occurred so far, how many dumpers or tankers had such systems installed?

Mr Khan said that Karachi has more than four million motorcycles. On one hand, the Sindh government has completely failed to provide a proper transportation system; on the other, it has left the people of Karachi at the mercy of deadly dumper trucks, tankers, and heavy vehicles.

“There is no city in the world where dumpers and trailers fearlessly crush innocent people and then go scot free,” he said.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2025