Karachi: Karachi experienced severe traffic congestion on Wednesday when law enforcement agencies blocked key roads in the South District to prevent a rally by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) from reaching the Karachi Press Club (KPC).
The protest, aimed at highlighting alleged enforced disappearances, was set to begin in Lyari and move towards the KPC. In response, authorities sealed off Sarwar Shaheed Road, Aiwan-e-Saddar Road, and parts of M.R. Kayani Road by positioning police vans and buses as barricades.
The road closures led to massive gridlocks on connecting routes, including Deen Muhammad Wafai Road, I.I. Chundrigar Road, Court Road, and the stretch linking PIDC House with Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road. Commuters were left struggling as traffic diversions caused widespread congestion.
The protestors, predominantly women and children, gathered near Zainab Market but were prevented from marching towards their intended destination. Holding banners and chanting slogans, they called for the release of missing persons and condemned alleged extrajudicial killings in Balochistan.
DIG-South Syed Asad Raza stated that approximately 80 to 100 protestors peacefully dispersed after holding their demonstration. The restrictions, which lasted over four hours, were lifted once the protest ended, easing traffic flow.
The Karachi Press Club strongly criticized the repeated road closures, labeling them an infringement on citizens’ right to protest. KPC President Fazil Jamili and Secretary Sohail Afzal Khan denounced the move, asserting that blocking access to the press club was a violation of democratic freedoms.
They described the restrictions as authoritarian measures that undermined democratic governance and the fundamental right to free speech.
