KARACHI: Sindh Home Minister Sohail Anwar Sial has ordered for extension in obtaining driving licenses by 30 days, after ruckus and clash erupted between police and citizens at city’s driving license branch in Nazimabad area.

Hundreds of citizens arrived at the licence office to buy forms, only to find out that the license forms have gone out of availability, thus leading to protests.

Incensed visitors shattered glasses of Nazimabad license branch building when cops stationed at the buildings refused entry to them.

Some of the license-seekers also attempted to scale walls to enter the building and collect forms, leading police to baton-charge them.

Visitors slammed the DIG Traffic for launching the campaign in haste, without allowing drivers and vehicle owners a reasonable time to get license forms and follow the procedure.

One of the visitors said, “It’s become a practice of Karachi police to mint money from citizens. A few months ago they had made mandatory for motorists to have blue-coloured number plates, and later helmet-wearing was made compulsory, but these orders were not enforced properly. This time police have planned another way to extract money from us.”

DIG Traffic Karachi Amir Shaikh had warned the drivers that from November 2 (today) the traffic police could arrest and jail them for up to a month for not having their driving licences.

In Karachi only 1.2 million people have driving licences, whereas the total number of registered vehicles in the city is 3.8m, officials said.

DIG Sheikh warned the city drivers to get their licences issued/renewed within the shortest possible time as they could be sent to jail under a provision of the Motor Vehicle Ordinance. NNI