A religious political party protesting the killings in Parachinar district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa expanded its protest in Karachi on Thursday, prompting traffic authorities to issue traffic plans to avoid inconvenience to commuters.
Violent clashes, which claimed more than 100 lives in October, have isolated the KP’s Kurram from the rest of the country.
On Sunday night, two people were killed and then beheaded after being assaulted on their way to Parachinar in Bagan area of Kurram.
Sunrise reported that Ishaq Hussain and Waseem Hussain, residents of Parachinar who had returned from abroad, had hired people to help them return to their hometown. However, the suspects intercepted them on the way and shot them dead and then beheaded them.
The Majlis Wahdat Muslimeen (MWM) organized sit-ins at MA Jinnah Road and Abbas Town on Abul Hasan Ispahani Road to show solidarity with the heirs of the victims of the Parachinar situation for the past three days.
On Thursday night, the third sit-in site was extended to Malir area on the main national highway.
A traffic police spokesperson said in a statement that “the main national highway from Malir-15 bridge towards Quaidabad was closed for traffic due to the sit-in.”
“Traffic is being diverted from Malir towards Model Colony,” he added.
Earlier, the MWM said in a statement that its sit-in at Numaish Chowrangi continued consecutively on Thursday amid the situation in Parachinar. On the occasion, MWM central leader Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi said that they were holding a peaceful protest against “barbarism”.
In view of the protests and sit-ins planned in Karachi starting Thursday night, the traffic police have drawn up a traffic plan for Sharea Pakistan from Star Gate/Natha Khan, National Highway (Malir-15), Sharea Pakistan (Ancholi ), Rizvia Chowrangi (Nazimabad), Abbas Town, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, Korangi, Gulshan-i-Maymar, Steel City/Gulshan-i-Hadeed and North Karachi/Surjani City.
At 9:43 p.m., the traffic police issued another statement announcing that roads leading to and from Sharea Faisal were closed due to the protests.
“Members of a religious political party are organizing a protest against the incident in Parachinar,” the statement said.
“Traffic coming from Star Gate is being diverted from Shah Faisal Colony Bridge to Shah Faisal Colony and traffic coming from the city is being diverted from Drigh Road to Rashid Manhas Road,” the statement added.
