Markets remained shut while lawyers also boycotted court proceedings as people protested in the streets across the country against spiralling inflation and excessive power bills on Saturday.
A nation-wide protest call was also issued by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI).
Major commercial centres in the large metropolis of Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Islamabad, apart from smaller cities, remained closed for business on Saturday.
People faced difficulties in travelling to their destinations as public transport and other forms of publicly available transport either remained off the roads or operated thinly. This meant that thoroughfares bore a largely deserted look.
The main body representing traders in Karachi - the Tajir Action Committee (TAC)- continued its shutter-down strike for a second consecutive day. The committee had given the caretaker government three days to announce cogent decisions to mitigate the impacts of rising inflation and energy costs.
They had warned of extending their strike by ten days unless the government takes action.
The traders received support from the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), who kept their offices closed on Friday in solidarity.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, lawyers from across the country joined the strike against rising inflation and energy prices by boycotting court proceedings.
Protests
In different parts of the country, residents and traders were irked by the excessive power bills poured into the streets, blocking them, as they staged protest demonstrations.
Protests were reported from Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar, among other parts of the country.
بجلی کے مہنگے بلوں کے خلاف اج بھی عوام کا احتجاج
— چوہدری مدثر رضا مچھیانہ (@Muddasaroffical) September 2, 2023
ہمارے میڈیا میں دکھایا جا رہا ہے کہ سب کچھ اچھا ہے pic.twitter.com/WPsYp915Ln