KARACHI, July 8: Rangers closed on Monday evening Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road to vehicular traffic from Jinnah Court to PIDC Chowk, the only outlet towards Clifton bridge after the closure of Fatima Jinnah Road and Abdullah Haroon Road, causing problems to motorists and commuters.

Heavy deployment of rangers was also made on the road, atop Jinnah Courts, the rangers headquarters in the city, and in the surrounding areas. The rangers continued patrolling the particular area in the evening.

Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road was closed for hours in the evening as the Director- General of Rangers, Sindh, Major-General Salahuddin, was to hold a press conference at Jinnah Courts in which two suspected masterminds behind the car- bomb blast in front of the US consulate were to be produced.

Almost an hour before the press conference and several hours after the press conference concluded the road remained closed to all kinds of traffic. Barriers were put up and the traffic coming from I. I. Chundrigar Road and heading to PIDC Chowk was diverted towards Aiwan-i-Saddar Road, the latter was also converted into a one-way road.

The traffic coming towards I.I. Chundrigar Road from Clifton was diverted either to Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan Road or Club Road due to the closure of that part of Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road where the rangers headquarters, Jinnah Courts, is situated.

The unexpected closure of one of the busiest roads in the city during evening rush hours caused a lot of problems to motorists and commuters. Traffic jams occurred at PIDC Chowk, around Metropole Hotel and Club Road. There was dense traffic on Abdullah Haroon Road from Fountain Chowk up to Electronics Market and its nearby streets because most of the traffic diverted from PIDC chowk took this route for their onward journey.

The sudden closure of the road caused panic as people were heard asking one another if an incident of terrorism had taken place. Panic also gave rise to different sorts of rumour.