KARACHI: Police on Sunday arrested Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi’s acting chief Muslim Pervaiz, Sindh Assembly member Muhammad Farooq, and several other party leaders during a press conference held outside the Sindh office of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

According to Jamaat-e-Islami, the arrests were made while party leaders were addressing the media in what the party described as a peaceful press conference. Police reportedly intervened before the conference concluded, a move JI termed an unjustified crackdown on political activity.

The party said police also ordered the closure of shops and hotels in the surrounding area. Those detained included district chiefs Sufyan Dilawar and Mudassar Hussain Ansari, along with several other party office-bearers.

Sources said tensions escalated after authorities raised objections to the establishment of a protest camp outside the ECP office.

The arrests come amid heightened political activity by Jamaat-e-Islami following its “Jeenay Do Karachi” (Let Karachi Live) march held on Shahrah-e-Faisal last Sunday.

Addressing the rally, JI Pakistan chief Engineer Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman had announced a protest sit-in outside the Sindh Assembly on February 14 and issued a warning to the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).

Earlier, on February 2, 2026, police registered a case against Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi’s leadership and activists in connection with the march. The party described the move as “political victimisation,” according to ARY News.

First Information Report (FIR) No. 26/37 was lodged at Tipu Sultan Police Station against JI Karachi chief Munim Zafar and around 1,000 party activists, workers and supporters. The FIR alleged that protesters dug up portions of Shahrah-e-Faisal and erected tents on the roadway.

Responding to the FIR, a JI spokesperson said the registration of a case against a peaceful protest was aimed at suppressing public dissent. “Legal actions will not deter our struggle for the rights of Karachiites,” the spokesperson said, reaffirming that the party would proceed with its planned sit-in outside the Sindh Assembly on February 14.