Several arrested after JI workers, police clash near Sindh Assembly
KARACHI: Violent clashes erupted in the metropolis as workers of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chapter attempted to march towards the Sindh Assembly here Saturday evening.
The protest, announced as an ‘indefinite sit-in’, was organised against what the JI described as “flaws in the provincial local government system, worsening municipal services and deteriorating law and order” in the megacity.
Party leaders said the administration had been informed in advance about the protest, while police maintained that permission to hold a sit-in or establish a camp in the Red Zone had not been granted.
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Ahead of the march, a heavy police contingent, including Quick Response Force (QRF), Rapid Response Force (RRF), female police personnel, and traffic police, was deployed around the Sindh Assembly, the Sindh Secretariat, and adjoining areas. Security arrangements led to severe traffic congestion in Saddar, Burns Road, I I Chundrigar Road, and nearby arteries.
As the march advanced, police blocked protesters near Urdu Bazaar and the Sindh Secretariat.
JI’s MPA Muhammad Farooq, along with JI Karachi Deputy Secretary Muhammad Abdul Razzaq, sat on the road and appealed to police to open the route.
The talks failed after authorities insisted that protests were not allowed in the Red Zone and engaged only deputy secretary-level officials. Following the breakdown of negotiations, JI workers, led by Karachi Chief Monem Zafar Khan, resumed their march towards the assembly.
As protesters continued to advance and refused to disperse, police escalated their response with repeated teargas shelling and baton charges. Several protesters were injured, while many were arrested, who were shifted to nearby police stations, including Artillery Maidan.
During the clashes, police seized a truck being used as a protest stage along with sound equipment and other materials brought for the sit-in.
Meantime, JI condemned what it described as a violent response by police and the Sindh government to its peaceful protest. It said dozens of workers were arrested, several injured or fainted, and some went missing during police action.
JI Karachi chief Monem Zafar said the use of force against unarmed protesters amounted to extreme oppression.
He stated that the party would not retreat and would continue its struggle for Karachi’s rights and an empowered local government.
The party said an earlier procession led by Monem Zafar from Masjid Khizra via Akbar Road was stopped at Court Road despite being peaceful. Talks held by JI Karachi deputy chief Muslim Parvez and Sindh Assembly member Muhammad Farooq with police officials failed, even though the party asserted its constitutional right to a peaceful sit-in.
Howe4er, Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said Jamaat-e-Islami had already been informed that entry into the Red Zone was not allowed.
He stated that agitated party workers entered the area and resorted to stone-pelting. Memon added that the Sindh Police and local administration had repeatedly advised Jamaat-e-Islami to hold a peaceful protest outside the Red Zone.
He criticized the party for disrupting traffic and ordinary citizens, noting that road closures and repeated attempts to force entry into the assembly were causing public inconvenience.
“Sometimes Jamaat-e-Islami blocks Sharea Faisal, sometimes it enters the assembly,” Memon said, emphasising that while the government is open to dialogue, the party should review its conduct and refrain from indulging in what he described as “politics of anarchy.”
Police seemed foiling the JI attempt to hold a sit-in camp, but tension prevailed in and around the Sindh Assembly and Sindh Secretariat areas and the situation remained volatile at the time of filing this report.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026