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| City in chaos over Benazir’s assassination |
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Friday, December 28, 2007
By Fasahat Mohiuddin
Karachi
News of Bhutto’s assassination spread like wildfire in the city Thursday evening, and all major markets and shopping centres pulled their shutters down (or were forced to do so). Traffic came to a standstill, as everyone tried to get home at the same time. Major traffic jams were reported all over the city.
All multinational fastfood chains closed business, while petrol stations put up barricades for protection against possible riots. A number of vehicles ran out of fuel as a result, and people either abandoned them on the roadside in favour of walking to their destinations, or tried to push them to the next available [open] fuel station.
Wedding halls also closed their shutters and families postponed functions. Aerial firing was also reported in different parts of the city.
The situation at the Abbasi shaheed Hospital was tough as patients were seen arriving on pushcarts, because ambulances ran out of petrol en route to the emergency ward.
Farooq Baloch Adds: The entire intra- and inter-city communication and transportation system of Karachi was paralysed minutes after the sad news of the assassination of Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) Chairperson, Benazir Bhutto, was aired on Thursday.
Scores of passengers at Jinnah International Airport Karachi, Cantonment Railway Station and all major bus stands in the city remained stranded for hours while many of them could not make it to their homes till the filing of this report. City’s road links with rest of the province remained blocked at the National and Super Highways while traffic on RCD highway also remained suspended. Pakistan Railway authorities also suspended the city’s rail link with up-country while air traffic was also affected.
The news of Benazir’s assassination led to panic and violence across the city and those in offices and outside their homes rushed to their homes as a result traffic on all major thoroughfares in the city came to a standstill. Worst-hit were those who use public transport since transporters put their buses off the roads so did most of the taxi and rickshaw drivers as more than fifty vehicles and several petrol pumps were torched in just a couple of hours due to which all kinds of public transport soon went off the roads.
The busiest bus stand of Saddar was highly crowded with people who could not find any public transport.
The few buses that were opera, already operating just after the time of the incident, were highly overcrowded and did not stop to pick even a single passenger at this stop. Some people in private cars and on motorcycles voluntarily gave lifts to the stranded passengers. In fact in many cases there were as many as five people riding on a single bike while six to seven people were aboard the cars.
Sharah-e-Faisal, the VVIP corridor of the city remained blocked till very late in the evening while drivers switched off the engines of their cars to save fuel as all the petrol pumps in the city were closed. Scores of motorcyclists were dragging their bikes as they ran out of petrol and could not find petrol pumps. Moreover, MA Jinnah Road was blocked at Numaish Chowrangi and Guru Mandir. Similarly, the situation on almost all the major roads in Clifton was also the same.
Scores of people, including women, old people and children, walked long distances to get to their homes. Office-goers, who didn’t opt to stay in their offices, remained stuck into crippling gridlocks at Sharah-e-Faisal, Numaish, Guru Mandir, Patel Para, Sohrab Goth, Punjab Chowrangi (Clifton), Natha Khan Goth, Malir and National Highway. Those who work in city’s business district Saddar town and live in far-flung areas of the city especially Orangi town, Bin Qasim, Gadap, Landhi, Korangi, Sohrab Goth and Surjani could not make it to their homes till late night.
Pakistan Railway also suspended their operations after two trains namely Shah Latif Express and Khushal Express were set on fire at Nodero and Tando Jam railway stations respectively. Three railway stations were also damaged therefore Karakoram and Millat Express were stopped at Drigh Road and Ran Pethani Railway stations which might be called back. Similarly, all the trains, operating at the time after the sad incident were stopped at the nearest stations. Those who had to leave for up-country returned and their tickets were refunded. Similarly, all the domestic flights were cancelled while the schedule of international flights also remained disturbed. The situation might remain the same for at least next few days as railway authorities could not confirm when they would restore rail service. Similarly, public transport would also remain off the road as scores of buses were already torched.
PPP cadres not the only ones rioting: Lawlessness prevailed in the city on Tuesday, and “opportunistic elements” were out in full force in the guise of PPP cadres, eyewitnesses told The News. ‘These people took to the streets soon after news of Benazir’s death came in, but they’re simply taking advantage of the opportunity and are looting and snatching cellphones,’ people said. ‘PPP cadres are involved in the rioting too, but others are out here as well, whose sole purpose is merely to promote lawlessness.’
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