Finally I manged to see my husband after two days being stuck at my mothers place. We were shopping @ Dolmen mall, Tariq road when my cousin came rushing and asked us to leave immediately.
Since we left early we managed to reach till Civic Centre’s flyover safely. But then, there’s where the chaos started.As I saw people panic, I noted these lines down on my PDA

“Fire and bullets (the sound) and smoke is what I see all around. We are stuck fires on our back and fire in our front. This is the view from gulshan iqbals flyover.”
“mobile phone networks are jammed and I’m in car with a two year old kid who’s allergic to smoke and my mother and bhabi. When firing started I could sense the panic in the ceased cars.one of the pessangers in the bus stopped adjacent to our car recited Quranic verses.
Petrol pumps, eatouts and medical stores(time medico and murad) are closed.”
My niece by then was coughing badly as the smoke cloud was engulfing the cars that were at cease. The driver had turned off the cars engine to save fuel. We thought of walking on foot to the Hassan Square Appartments, which were just across the road, but then sounds of bullets firing in the vicinity were clear and we ought not to take the risk.

Leaving the car was also not a good idea as we could witness what was going on with the left ones.
There’s no u-turn on that road. The bike riders picked up the bikes and crossed the island whereas the Bus drivers asked the passangers to walk on foot.

Our car was in the right most lane and the first car that I saw being ignited was infront of Civic Centre, the road that goes towards Askari Park, the old Sabzi mandi. It was a group of four to five young men. After liting the car one of the guys picked up the klashenkov. (Some of the guys witnessing the scene with me exclaimed klashenkov, and hence I came to know the gun’s name) It was a small car Mehran or Charade or maybe Khyber that had immunition. I don’t remember the colour.

I managed to take some pictures from my PDA which are not very clear.

Finally necessity is the mother if invention the men tried to break the island and when in vain, bricks (envicrete) were kept on both ends and cars were pushed over it by people’s help.
I met this guy helping the stuck cars, who used to be at my university and was an active APMSO worker.Who told me that the ”fellow members” were there to help people!
I felt good for them (not to Mention, this is the first time I’m heard of praising them but good deed is good done by whoever).

We made it to my my mom’s house safely in 15 minutes from there. However my brother got stuck in DHA and reached home @ 2:30 in the protocol of police mobile!
One of ex-servants walked from Gulstane-jauhar and reached our place late.
That was the worst I have seen in last 12 years in Karachi. 12th may was there and 18th October, but Karachi never seemed so haunted.

May the country and country men learn to control grief and anger and may we all be safe. Amen.