Caged in: Residents perturbed by Karachi's 'Buckingham Palace'

KARACHI:

It is the permanent residents of Clifton Block 2 and 3 who have been inconvenienced the most by the barricading of the main road outside Bilawal House. Yet, they were also the ones who had to adapt as quickly as possible, and with minimal fuss, because they simply had no other choice.

Finding themselves under house arrest, the residents have seen multiple businesses shut down, such as Clifton Grill, because of the blockade. Owners of small businesses, fruit sellers and tailors in the commercial area adjacent to Indus Valley have suffered setbacks as customers find it inconvenient, even entirely impossible on some days, to reach them.

"It is as if Asif Ali Zardari felt that he was entitled to make a Buckingham Palace for himself on public property. He was the constitutional head of the country, yet he has been indulging in the illegal seizure of these roads for the better part of his tenure," said a resident of Clifton Block 3, who lives adjacent to South City Hospital. "Such an action has no precedent anywhere in the world. Most heads of state cannot get away with breaking a traffic light while ours felt like he could take over an entire main road, that too permanently."

It is not only those who work or reside in the area that have been affected by the constricted streets - students of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture have faced inconveniences multiple times as they find themselves caught in bumper to bumper traffic on the narrow road while rushing to make it to class on time.

When asked about demolishing the wall around the Bilawal House, one student likened it to the tearing down of the Berlin wall in 1989 - not in scope but in the statement that it will make. "This was my hope from the party as a voter of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. I feel it is the reason that NA-250 supported PTI like it did. I knew they would not let this stand," said a resident.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 30^th, 2013.