Roads to Karachi Press Club blocked as protests erupt over Imaan, Hadi conviction

All roads leading to the Karachi Press Club (KPC) were blocked on Monday as traffic in the city centre came to a standstill following a protest against the conviction of lawyer-activist Imaan Mazari and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, in a case related to controversial social media posts.

Mazari and Chattha were arrested on Friday in Islamabad while reportedly heading to the district courts. An anti-terrorism court later sent them on a 14-day judicial remand. The following day, a district and sessions court convicted the couple in a case related to controversial social media posts and sentenced them to 17 years in prison.

Read More: Lawyers Imaan, Hadi sent on 14-day judicial remand by Islamabad ATC after arrest

The case centres on alleged posts and reposts on X, which authorities described as “anti-state”. The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency registered the case in August last year under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016, alleging the content was intended to incite divisions and portray state institutions negatively.

The Karachi Traffic Police said in a post on X around 5pm that vehicular flow was slow on II Chundrigar Road, Shaheen Complex Chowk, Aiwan-e-Sadr Road,  Fawara Chowk, Zainab Market and the surrounding areas due to “security” reasons.

Human rights activist and lawyer Jibran Nasir accused authorities in a post on X of blocking access to the Karachi Press Club in an attempt to suppress protests against the couple’s convictions.

Nasir said all roads leading to the press club had been sealed using containers and parked buses. “The state wants to deny journalists, advocates and civil society the right to protest and expose the sham trial and conviction of Advocates Imaan Mazaari and Hadi Ali Chatha,” he said.

Nasir further criticised what he described as increasing state repression, saying such measures would not silence dissent. “No number of disappearances, arrests and convictions can rid the state of its fear of the truth,” he added.

He also accused the Sindh government and law enforcement agencies of violating fundamental rights. “Sindh Police are again being used and abused as a tool by the PPP government and establishment to trample over fundamental rights,” Nasir said.

The protest call comes after Islamabad’s lawyers began a three-day strike earlier today following the arrest and sentencing of advocates Imaan Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, with boycotts halting court proceedings across the capital.

Islamabad High Court Bar Association Secretary Manzoor Jajja confirmed that lawyers had been asked not to appear before courts. “Today, lawyers staged a strike in the Islamabad High Court. Lawyers did not appear in court, as requested,” he said.

Jajja said lawyers must remain united against what he described as police oppression and announced that they would proceed to the district courts in a convoy to formally register their protest. A rally later moved from the deputy commissioner’s office to the adjoining senior superintendent of police’s office, where lawyers chanted slogans against the police. Lawyers ended their protest upon reaching the District Judicial Complex.

Also Read: Lawyers begin three-day strike over arrest

The Islamabad Bar also banned police entry into court premises. Lawyers removed police personnel who had been stationed in the court canteen. Earlier in the day, a separate demonstration was held outside the Sessions Judge East court, where additional police were deployed to maintain order.

The strike also surfaced during a civil case hearing at the Islamabad High Court. Advocate Qaiser Abbas Gondal, appearing for one of the parties, informed the court that the strike was being observed in response to the detention of lawyers. He said the bar secretary was also scheduled to appear in the case but did not attend due to the strike.