THATTA, March 2: Partial strike was observed, processions were taken out and classes were boycotted by students of academic institutions in most of the district on Wednesday in protest against registration of a case against People's Party Parliamentarians MPA Humera Alwani and 70 activists.

In Mirpur Sakro, Var, Ghulamullah and Dhabeji, police arrested eight PPP activists, five of them identified as Yousuf Beelam, Ashraf, Akbar, Abbas Tunio and Sohrab Chandio.

Witnesses said police tortured Mr Beelam in public before dragging him to the police station. TPO Gul Abbas in Mirpur Sakro and SHO Anwar Awan in Dhabeji used abusive language with traders to get the closed bazaars opened.

Processions were taken out in Thatta, Mirpur Sakro, Mirpur Bathoro, Var, Ghulamullah, Ghora Bari, Chuhar Jamali, Sujawal, Jati and Daro. The participants, wearing black armbands and raising anti-administration slogans, marched through main bazaars and thoroughfares of the towns.

In Tando Hafiz, Jherruk, Mirpur Bathoro and Chuhar Jamali, students boycotted classes. In Makli, PPP leaders Baboo Ghulam Hussain and Dr Wahid Soomro and 15 activists, including Suleman Lund, Ahmed Khushk and Imtiaz Qureshi, observed a token hunger strike.

Meanwhile, Mrs Alwani told journalists that she was not going to seek protective bail from the high court and added: "let police arrest me." Complaining of political victimization, she said that the Thatta police, particularly in Mirpur Bathoro taluka, had lodged over a dozen FIRs against a large number of PPP activists over the past couple of months at the behest of the local rivals of the party.

Ten party activists, nominated in the FIR with Mrs Alawani, have moved the court of the civil judge Gharo for bail. Meanwhile, another PPP MPA, Sassui Palijo, has said that her life is in danger as activists of an ethnic organization, a partner of provincial coalition, follow her when she returns home from the Sindh Assembly.

Talking to Dawn here on Wednesday, she alleged that Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim had given a free hand to the ethnic party. She said that her privilege motions on law and order, etc, had invited displeasure of the party which seemed to wanting to teach her a lesson. Ms Palijo said that she could not be intimidated by the chase and threat calls.