Public gatherings of five or more people are now barred across Hyderabad Division. Commissioner Fayyaz Abbasi has imposed a Section 144 Hyderabad order for the next 15 days, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported from Hyderabad on 12 October. The same order restricts several other activities, APP said.
The notification covers Hyderabad, Jamshoro, Thatta, Sujawal, Badin, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Matiari and Dadu. APP described that list as all nine districts of the division. The agency's report does not give a reason for the restrictions.
What the notification bars
Demonstrations, rallies, processions, sit-ins, hunger strikes and public meetings are not allowed if they lack permission, according to the notification APP cited. Blocking roads and interrupting the flow of traffic are also forbidden. So are loudspeakers and the display of weapons.
Anyone hoping to hold a rally, sit-in or public meeting in these districts would have to obtain permission first. A crowd of five or more falls within the gathering ban APP reported. The dispatch does not explain the process for seeking that permission, or name an office that will receive requests.
How long the Section 144 Hyderabad order lasts
The Section 144 Hyderabad order runs for 15 days, APP reported. The dispatch is datelined 12 October, but the copy does not state a calendar end date. Fayyaz Abbasi, the Hyderabad commissioner, is the official who imposed the restrictions. APP tied the details to a notification and did not quote any further remarks from him.
What is Section 144
Section 144 is a provision in Pakistan's criminal procedure law under which the administration can restrict public gatherings for a limited period. Here, the commissioner has used that power to limit gatherings and the other acts named in the notification. APP did not report any fine, jail term or other penalty for violating the order.
Karachi's gathering ban, reported separately
A Dawn headline said authorities had imposed Section 144 in Karachi and banned gatherings of more than five people until 20 October. That item, as available, does not name who issued the Karachi order or list any wider limits. It is a separate report from the Hyderabad Division notification. The two accounts also use slightly different gathering thresholds: five or more in the APP report on Hyderabad, and more than five in the Dawn headline on Karachi.
For residents of the nine districts, the order means a 15-day bar on public gatherings of five or more. APP did not say whether routine activity in markets or private homes is affected, because those places are not mentioned. The text it did describe is specific: no unapproved demonstrations or meetings, no road blockages, no disruption of traffic, no loudspeakers and no display of weapons.
