Living amid the fear of curfew

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KARACHI – Amid rumours that curfew has been imposed in some troubled areas of the city, two men including an activist of Haqiqi were gunned down on Monday.
Orangi Town, the hotbed of violence, remained tense on the fourth consecutive day as routine life in the Peerabad, Qasba Morr, Urdu Nagar and Kati Pahari areas remained suspended. Intense aerial firing was reported from Peerabad and Qasba Morr throughout the day. Rangers’ personnel conducted snap-checking of all passengers in every bus or car leading towards the troubled town.
Owing to the rumours of a curfew in the troubled areas, the residents have started storing rations to face any difficult situation.
The affected areas wore a deserted a look due to the prevailing tension, as the epicentre shifted from Orangi Town to Saddar after an MQM-Haqiqi activist was shot dead in the Lines Area.
Brigade police said Naseem Ahmed alias Bhaiyya, 42, son of Habib Ahmed, was cleaning out his office in House No LC-104, Sector 2-D, Lines Area at Nizami Road when two unidentified men riding a motorcycle sprayed him with bullets.
He was taken to the Civil Hospital Karachi where he succumbed to his injuries. The victim was an activist of the MQM-Haqiqi.
An FIR under section 302/34 of Pakistan Panel Code (PPC) was lodged against unknown culprits on the complaint of Shahzad Khan.
A mob of enraged people blocked the roads, causing the suspension of vehicular traffic. They torched tyres on roads and pelted passing vehicles with stones while a large contingent of law enforcement agencies reached the spot to control the situation.
Miscreant also forced the shopkeepers in Saddar to close down their businesses to mourn the death of Ahmed. Angry protesters also beat some shopkeepers on refusal to shutdown their shops.
Separately, a man identified as Omair, 23, son of Karam Illahi, a resident of Nazimabad No 1, was gunned down outside his house. Gulbahar police said he was taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for medico-legal formalities.
Meanwhile, the MA Jinnah Road also wore a deserted look as businesses remained closed to condemn the killing of MQM worker Kashif and Jaffar in Nanak Wara, Ranchore Lines on Sunday. Incidents of intermittent aerial firing were also reported from Saddar and Ranchore Lines.