The mood of the city on Monday changed drastically as news of the assassination of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Member of Provincial Assembly Raza Haider in Liaquatabad No 2 spread, with the gory nature of the incident sparking apprehensions about equally violent repercussions.
Violence erupted soon after the news of the assassination was flashed on news channels. Signals and streetlights on many roads were switched off by the authorities concerned, adding to the tense atmosphere in the city.
Matters were made worse as armed miscreants resorted to aerial firing in many areas, and ensuring that shops and businesses were shut down. As reports on the violence in the aftermath of Haider’s assassination were broadcast, citizens and office goers sought to reach the safe confines of their homes at the earliest.
With many leaving at the same time, severe gridlocks were reported in various areas of the city. While traffic signals on I.I Chundrigar Road are usually switched off during peak rush hours in the evening, traffic sergeants were weighed down not only by the sheer volume of traffic, but the indiscipline of many drivers who violated line protocols and ethics.
Traffic on Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road was at a standstill for a number of hours, as drivers occupied lanes reserved for traffic from the other side. Similar commotion was witnessed near the Punjab Chowrangi, Teen Talwar and the Cantt Railway Station.
Similar gridlocks and disorder was reported from Sharea Faisal, M.A. Jinnah Road, and University Road, as citizens rushed to their sanctuaries. Shops and businesses on and around M.A. Jinnah Road and New M.A. Jinnah Road – including the wholesale markets of Regal, Boulton Market and Electronic Market — forcibly closed, with some reports also claiming that law enforcement personnel advised citizens to shut shop and not sit outside their homes.
Gulistan-e-Jauhar, the eye of the storm in the recent wave of targeted violence, flared again in the aftermath of the assassination. Reports of skirmishes between political activists were received from different blocks of Jauhar, but political parties did not confirm any incident. Wholesale hardware, carpet and other markets, as well as shops in and around Jauhar Mor, Nipa, Gulshan Chowrangi and adjoining areas were also immediately shut. A resident of Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 13 told The News that tea stalls and shacks were among the first to be shut.
Meanwhile, a major blaze was also reported in the old super market of Liaquatabad, which was not doused till late in the night. Fire officials told The News that they were not guaranteed any protection by the police, and hence, they did not want to venture into any troubled area, specially one as congested as Liaquatabad.
Liaquatabad Town Supritendent of Police (SP) Waqar Malan refuted the fire department’s claims, claiming instead that no one was daring to venture outside. “I have personally been asking the fire department to come and douse the fire, but they declined our requests,” he said. “Thereafter, announcements were made from mosques and residents of the area were urged to aid the police in extinguishing the fire,” the SP added.
Traffic gridlocks, however, did not divert attention away from the tense atmosphere in the city. Although ethnic violence was feared in the city, bus, rickshaw taxi drivers all abandoned their customers, and rushed to areas of relative safety. No public transport translated into increased business for local hotels, as citizens sought to stay the night at safe places.
Petrol pumps, grocery stores and pharmacies also shut soon after news of a petrol pump in Nazimabad being torched by armed miscreants filtered through. Fuel, essential food items and medicines were resultantly in short supply, while cellular networks were also disturbed. Marriage halls, specially in District Central, had to be shut down as well, with one of the workers at a marriage hall near Gulshan Chowrangi telling The News much of the food for a wedding was distributed among employees and the needy.
