New Delhi: Unidentified gunmen opened fire at the Aaj TV building in Karachi, Pakistan. Everyone in the newsroom was stuck inside the building and three people have been injured in the firing which went on for at least three hours.
There are rumours that the building was fired upon by the supporters of a pro-government party, the Mutahida Qami Movement.
Aaj TV has issued a statement saying: "Our cameramen were shooting the rally procession when the gunmen started to fire indiscriminately at our office. No security was sent to us though the firing went on for three hours."
A huge mob had surrounded the building earlier. The parking lot of the news channel is still on fire.
"The situation in Karachi will go from bad to worse in the days ahead. Private TV channels are questioning the government and are blaming it for not taking any action. It is the government that is responsible for all situation," said Geo TV bureau chief, Hamid Mir.
"Aaj TV had requested the government for security but there was no response from them - this despite the fact that the police have been on the roads of Karachi since Saturday morning. The attackers were trying to kill the director of Aaj TV," he said.
The government has claimed that no emergency services have arrived because of road blocks in the state.
Road blocks were put because earlier in the day, tension reached a peak when clashes between rival parties left at least 19 dead and almost 70 injured.
The political crisis descended into violence ahead of planned protests over President General Pervez Musharraf's suspension of the chief justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.
"This can either be due to the incompetence of the government or its complicity" — Human Right's Watch
Meanwhile, Musharraf backers were all set to flex their muscles after two months of silence with a counter-demonstration in Karachi and a huge ruling party rally in the Capital Islamabad.
Musharraf has called an emergency meeting with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz over the killings in Karachi. There are rumours that he might declare a state of emergency to curb growing civil unrest against his embattled regime.
However, Musharraf has denied this rumour in the wake of the fact that Opposition leaders have warned him that emergency could push Pakistan toward civil strife.
He said that the Supreme Court of Pakistan should decide in the interest of the state, adding that such decisions need not be taken on the streets of the country.
Security forces have been on high alert, and are detaining hundreds of activists in anticipation of the anti-government rally in Karachi.
Hamid Mir said, "Karachi is burning and the violence on the streets of Karachi is out of control. However, Musharraf and Prime Minister Aziz are not doing enough to control the situation. Musharraf is against imposing the Presidential rule and there is a possibility that Governor's rule may be imposed in Karachi."
Musharraf had dismissed Chaudhry on March 9 this year, on charges that he abused his power. This unleashed national protests by lawyers and judges that turned the dismissed judge into a symbol of defiance.
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