Sindh High Court Chief Justice Mushir Alam on Sunday directed the concerned judicial magistrates of the city to ensure release of hundreds of violators of pillion riding ban on personal bonds.

Justice Alam issued these directives while taking notice of media reports regarding massive arrests by the Karachi police over the violation of the ban on pillion riding imposed for three days during Eidul Fitr after recent acts of violence.

According to media reports, police arrested nearly 600 bike riders for defying the ban, which the citizens of Karachi have strongly opposed.

The SHC chief justice directed the judicial magistrates to visit the police stations falling in their respective jurisdictions and order release of all the arrested men on executing personal bonds or national identity cards so that no citizen remains in custody on the occasion of Eidul Fitr. The latest ban on the activity was ordered by the government on Saturday, after a wave of target killings almost a dozen people by Saturday morning.

The government had also banned pillion riding in Karachi and Hyderabad on Tuesday as part of its security plan for the Yaum-e-Ali.

The government has banned pillion riding in the metropolis numerous times during its tenure, and though the authorities claim that the ban is imposed for security reasons, it has been observed that banning pillion riding usually has little effect on the frequency of target killings and other crimes.

The city’s target killers often hunt in pairs, usually riding together on a motorcycle. Using the congested roads and streets of the city, the murderers often escape with ease on the two-wheeler.