Lawyers protesting the alleged beating of their colleague and inaction by the police triggered widespread and prolonged traffic congestion along Karachi’s main arteries on Wednesday evening, according to officials and witnesses.
The traffic police spokesperson said in a statement that the lawyers staged a demonstration on main Korangi Road near Kala Pull at around 3:15pm, protesting the non-registration of a first information report (FIR) by Mehmoodabad police against the alleged torture of lawyer Iqbal Inayat Jatoi.
Police did not disclose details about the alleged assault when contacted by Dawn.com for comment.
Both lanes of Korangi Road were closed and traffic was diverted to alternative routes.
“Please take a U-turn at the CSD signal towards Jinnah Hospital Road and Boulevard Signal,” said an alert from the Traffic Police posted on X.
“At around 9:42pm, the lawyers shifted their demonstration to Sharea Faisal, blocking both lanes of the main road near the Finance and Trade Centre,” Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Traffic Police Ahmed Nawaz Cheema told Dawn.com.
Both tracks of the main road, which link the city with the airport and National Highway, were closed, said traffic police in a statement.
When contacted, South Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sajid Amir Sadozai confirmed to Dawn.com that the lawyers were protesting “due to some issue of non-registration of FIR with the Mehmoodabad police in district east”.
The East SSP and DIG did not respond to Dawn.com’s request for details about the alleged assault.
The blockade of both lanes caused severe traffic congestion in several areas of the provincial metropolis, where citizens were held up for hours.
“Due to the protest … traffic is slow at the following places: Kala Pull to FTC … Boulevard signal towards Hino Chowrangi,” another Traffic Police alert read.
Sindh Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah took notice of the protest on Sharea Faisal and sought a report from the Karachi additional inspector general of police, according to his spokesperson Abdul Rasheed Channa.
The blockages not only hindered transportation but also inconvenienced commuters, said the provincial chief executive, saying that Sharea Faisal was a “jugular vein” of Karachi and its closure triggered problems for the citizens.
“No one would be allowed to take the law into their hands in the name of protest,” he declared.
Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar also took notice of the lawyers’ protest on Sharea Faisal and made contact with East SSP, said Karachi police spokesperson Sohail Ahmed Jokhio.
Lanjar directed the East SSP to immediately reach out to the lawyers and work to end the protest through “negotiation and understanding” and clear the roads, the spokesperson said in a statement.
It added that the home minister requested that a “reputable” police officer with a good understanding of the issue be assigned to hold negotiations with the lawyers.
The lawyers ended their protest later in the night at the home minister’s request, Jokhio said in a statement. He added that a delegation of the lawyers would meet with the home minister.
“The lawyers are our brethren and their legitimate demands would be fulfilled,” Lanjar was quoted as saying in the statement.
Meanwhile, Traffic Police reported that the flow of traffic on both Korangi Road and Sharea Faisal had been restored to normal.
Lawyers to boycott court proceedings on Thursday
Meanwhile, Karachi Bar Association (KBA) General Secretary Ikhtiar Ali Channa and President Amir Nawaz Waraich issued a statement announcing a boycott of court proceedings on Thursday over the alleged torture of lawyers.
They also announced that there would be a “ban” imposed on the entry of police officers in city courts.
In their statement, the lawyers alleged that their colleague was beaten in Mehmoodabad but the police did not register an FIR. They added that lawyers staged a protest on Kala Pull after which the FIR was registered.
However, they said that some “miscreants” allegedly attacked the protesting lawyers at Kala Pull and damaged their vehicles as well. The KBA office-bearers said they wanted to lodge another FIR against the miscreants who attacked them during the protest, but Defence police were not willing to do so.
The demonstrators moved to Sharea Faisal, demanding that Defence police file the FIR.
The Sindh Bar Council (SBC) also strongly condemned in a statement the “barbaric attack by private goons and police personnel” on SBC member Iqbal Inayat Jatoi, saying he was “seriously injured”.
“Despite the gravity of the incident, the FIR has not yet been registered,” the statement said. “In condemnation of this criminal and terrorist act, the Sindh Bar Council announces a full-day strike on across all courts in Sindh Province.
“We also demand that Sindh inspector general of police , Karachi deputy inspector general of police and the concerned SSP and station house office immediately lodge the FIR and arrest the culprits involved in the premeditated attack,” M Rustam Bhutto, acting secretary of the SBC, said in a statement.
