Ahead of PTI strike, Karachi police detain 180 under Sindh govt's MPO orders

• Detainees from all districts will be held in Malir Jail for 30 days.
• Action taken to avoid disruption, sit-ins, threats to public safety.
• PTI condemns crackdown before its Feb 8 shutter-down strike.

Authorities have detained 180 people in Karachi under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance ahead of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protest, citing concerns over possible disruptions to law and order.

According to a notification issued by the Sindh government, the 180 individuals detained under the MPO law include 24 from District Central, 21 from South, 51 from East, 23 from Keamari, 22 from Korangi, nine from Malir, and 30 from West.

The notification states that the individuals named in the list may block roads, stage sit-ins, and disrupt the law and order situation, which could pose a threat to public life and property.

Orders have been issued to detain all listed individuals for 30 days, and they are to be arrested and shifted to the Malir Jail.

Meanwhile, PTI leaders criticised the Sindh government’s crackdown on party workers and officials ahead of the party’s shutter-down strike on February 8, calling it an attempt to suppress peaceful political activity and comparing the province’s actions to Punjab’s past police excesses.

According to The News, the party claimed that over 150 of its leaders and activists had been arrested to ensure that the strike was not observed. 

Sindh PTI President Haleem Adil Sheikh said the crackdown reflected a competition in brutality between the Sindh and Punjab governments.

“Punjab set a standard of barbarism, and Sindh is trying to outdo it. Perhaps Bilawal Bhutto Zardari wants to surpass Maryam Nawaz by more raids, more arrests, more oppression, as if there is an award for crushing peaceful politics,” he said.

Sheikh alleged that the Sindh police had conducted raids on PTI leaders’ and workers’ homes across Karachi and other districts, breaking down doors and harassing party members. 

“Over 155 PTI leaders, workers and elected representatives have been arrested so far, and several others have been shifted to unknown locations,” he said.

He added that the February 8 strike would be entirely voluntary and peaceful.

“We have not called for forced shop closures, vandalism or roadblocks. We are peaceful political actors who believe in constitutional and democratic struggle. Violence is not part of our politics. Arrests and police brutality cannot stop the PTI’s genuine movement for freedom,” he added.