Three weeks on, nightly protests over Mir Raza’s murder continue in Karachi

Three weeks on, nightly protests over Mir Raza's murder continue in Karachi.

Key points

• Dawar ShoaibWaqas Ali Ranjha Published August 24, 2026 Updated August 24, 2026 08: 34am.
• Hassan and some friends initially staged the protest at Charminar Chowrangi, Baha­durabad and afterwards shifted it to Sharea Faisal, where it grew in size.
• The Nursery bus stop has been turned into a focal point, where a sizeable banner inscribed with 'Justice for Mir Raza' is displayed at the centre.
• Family, friends and citizens gather on Sharea Faisal every night to demand justice Vow to continue their demonstrations until those responsible for his death are arrested.
• On Saturday night, individuals turned out in substantial numbers and blocked both tracks of Sharea Faisal, staging a sit-in there until the wee hours of Sunday.

Dawar ShoaibWaqas Ali Ranjha Published August 24, 2026 Updated August 24, 2026 08: 34am. Join our Whatsapp Channel. Add Dawn as a trusted source.

KARACHI: Family, friends, acquaintances and civil society members have been gathering on Sharea Faisal near Nursery every night for the past three weeks, blocking the key artery and vowing that they would not offer up until justice is provided to slain Mir Raza Ali, whose body with a gunshot wound was identified on July 29 at a desolate spot in Gulistan-I-Jauhar.

More than 26 days after the murder, the identity of his killer(s) is yet to be known, compelling civil society to take to the streets on a daily basis. The Nursery bus stop has been turned into a focal point, where a sizeable banner inscribed with 'Justice for Mir Raza' is displayed at the centre.

For context, the protesters include Raza's family and friends, and dozens of men, women, their children and individuals of different age groups who have been demanding the arrest of Raza's killers and exemplary punishment for them.

During a visit to the protest site in the small hours of Sunday, protesters were seen using clapping as a collective expression of defiance and solidarity, blending it with their chants to create a wall of sound that carries far beyond the protest site.

At times, the chanting, applause and calls for justice merge with the sound of drizzle and the movement of the night air, lending the gathering an atmosphere of persistence and resolve.

While others explain the protest's background and history to those arriving for the first time, plenty of participants raise their hands while chanting slogans and voicing their demands; some hold placards and banners bearing the words 'Justice for Mir Raza', making their presence felt.

While another wipes away tears as emotions run high, during the protest, one person can be seen addressing the gathering from the stage in memory of Raza.

Some protesters alternately climb onto water tankers placed by the police to block the roads and address the crowd from above, raising slogans against the police and the administration.

From time to time, slogans rise from the stage: ' Mir, hum sharminda hain, tere qatil zinda hain ' (Mir, we are ashamed, your killers are still free) and ' Allah ka qanoon hai, khoon ka badla khoon hai' (It is Allah's law; blood must be avenged with blood).

In other moments, speakers seek to keep Raza's memory alive while impressing upon the crowd that his killing was not merely the loss of an individual but, in their view, an assault on the hopes and aspirations of Karachi's young individuals.

In practice, the stage reverberates with chants: ' Zinda hai Mir, zinda hai; bhaiyon ki shakal mein zinda hai, beton ki shakal mein zinda hai; zinda hai Mir, zinda hai ' (Mir lives on, he lives on; he lives on in the face of brothers, he lives on in the face of sons; Mir lives on).

At other times, the crowd raises the slogan: 'Mir, tere khoon se inqilab aayega, raigan na jayega, inqilab aayega ' (Mir, your blood will bring revolution; it will not go in vain; revolution will come). 'We will not let Raza's blood be in vain'.

According to Dawn spoke to some of the participants who, they would come daily to record their protest and would not provide up hope until the killers were arrested.

Alleging that the authorities were showing disregard for the grieving family, the protesters remarked, "The powerful think residents would obtain tired of protesting in a few more days, but we assure them that we will stand and protest for Raza, despite it taking months or even a year. We will not let his blood be in vain. We will bring his family justice."

On one side, dozens of men and women sit on rugs spread throughout the road, responding to slogans raised from the stage with enthusiasm and unwavering intensity.

On the other, groups of youngsters spread throughout both tracks of Sharea Faisal, chanting at the top of their voices for the authorities' resignation over what they describe as their failure to deliver justice.

For context, the presence of women, men and children gives the gathering the character of a broad-based public protest. Plenty of had come with their families while others stated they were taking time out of their daily routines to join the demonstration. Among the regular protesters is a woman known as "Apa".

She informed Dawn that she did not know Raza or his family personally and had only met him once when she visited his eatery. "But when I came to know that he had been murdered in such a way, I could not tolerate it, " she remarked.

She remarked she had children of her own and could understand what the family was going through. "This is not a jungle where we are living. It is a city. Even in a jungle there are laws, " she continued.

Apa remarked she would continue attending the protest and would be the last person to leave unless justice was provided. She remarked she remained hopeful that the truth would emerge and those responsible for Raza's death would be arrested.

For Raza's friend Hassan Surya, the protest began before the family's demonstration.

When Raza went missing, he remarked, friends and family initially thought that he might have left home after becoming upset over "something personal". They continued searching for him and when "we found out that he had been murdered in such a way, I started the protest", he remarked.

He remarked the family was busy with the investigation and other matters at the time.

Some of his close friends have since halted coming regularly, he lamented, but he has continued to attend.

Hassan remarked protesters had repeatedly become hopeful when the administration appeared to take action, but their hopes were followed by frustration.

"They keep creating diversions and excuses, " he remarked. "But we will not back down."

According to Two other protesters, they had been attending the demonstration for around 15 days. They remarked they had joined as anyone murdered in such circumstances deserved justice.

One of them remarked the protest had initially attracted fewer residents but was gradually turning into a public movement as more citizens joined. He continued that the administration had yet to take any meaningful action on their demands. Published in Dawn, August 24th, 2026.

For now, three weeks on, nightly protests over Mir Raza's murder continue in Karachi remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.