KARACHI: Com­muters heading towards the city centre on Sunday evening suffered prolonged traffic jams as multiple arteries rem­ained choked due to roadblocks by law enforcers in the wake of a political rally near Numaish Chowrangi.

Due to the holiday, people were travelling with their families to various parts of the city; however, because of the traffic jams, routes that usually take only a few minutes were taking hours.

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf had announced a public gathering in the Bagh-i-Jinnah ground on Sunday near Numaish Chowrangi to demonstrate its political power.

The traffic police did not provide any information on their official X account regarding which roads were blocked due to congestion or which alternative routes could be used.

Multiple roads in districts West, Keamari and Central were choked as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi visited parts of Baldia Town, Ittehan Town and other areas to mobilise people for their rally.

Party activists were also seen heading towards the city centre in the form of rallies, carrying party flags on trucks, cars, and motorcycles in the evening. As a result, Jahangir Road, road from Nazimabad to Habib Bank Chowrangi, Sanitary Market to Lasbela and Rizivia Society to Pak Colony were jammed.

Meanwhile, commuters who wished to take the Liaquatabad Dak Khana route also faced prolonged traffic jams for hours. However, this was not the only route where people were suffering from traffic congestion, as vehicles coming from Essa Nagri and Gharibabad towards the Civic Centre and Sharea Faisal were also moving at a snail’s pace severe jams.

Sharea Faisal was, however, opened for vehicular traffic.

Commuters travelling in cars remained stuck, while motorcyclists took adjacent streets in search of alternative routes so that they could reach their destinations.

It was also reported that routes connecting to Numaish Chowrangi were either blocked or had heavy police deployment which led traffic jams on main arteries. Meanwhile, commuters travelling on Rashid Minhas Road and University Road towards Hassan Square also faced prolonged traffic jams due to severe congestion.

Published in Dawn, January 12th, 2026