Section 144 imposed in Karachi for New Year’s Eve: notification

The Karachi Commissioner issued a notification to impose Section 144 for a 48-hour period starting on December 31, it emerged on Sunday.

New Year’s Eve in Karachi sees citizens performing aerial gunfire and using fireworks which have caused injury in the past.

On December 31, 2023, then-Commissioner Muhammad Saleem Rajput imposed Section 144 “to safeguard the people of the city during New Year’s celebrations”.

According to a notification, the commissioner while exercising powers delegated by the provincial home department imposed the ban from December 31 to January 1, 2024.

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code is a legal provision that empowers district administrations to prohibit an assembly of four or more people in an area for a limited period.

According to the notification dated December 24 — a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi has imposed the ban based on information that “a large number of youngsters from different areas of the city will move to Seaview on motorcycles and cars for the celebrations of New Year”.

The notification adds that the presence of these people creates traffic jams and inconveniences “the residents of the area”.

South Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) requested the ban on displaying firearms, aerial firing and the use of fireworks to “safeguard the precious lives of the citizens”.

The commissioner noted that on New Year’s Eve, “some individuals get involved in aerial firing that may cause untoward incidents/loss of human lives”.

A “complete ban on carrying/display of arms, aerial firing and use of firecrackers on New Year’s Eve-2025” was notified, with the ban applicable within the local limits of Karachi from December 31 to January 1, 2025.