KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement activists and supporters led by the MQM’s central leaders scaled containers and pushed aside barricades on Sunday to reach Chief Minister House, where they held a sit-in to protest over water scarcity in the city.

The chief minister termed it a ‘wrong precedent’ set by the MQM and the police authorities saw it as a ‘violation’ of an understanding they had reached with the party.

Karachi South Zone DIG Munir Ahmed Shaikh said the MQM leadership had reached an ‘understanding’ with the police authorities that they would restrict their protest to the Karachi Press Club to avoid inconvenience to commuters but they ‘violated’ it by marching on CM House.

The protesters, including women, led by Dr Farooq Sattar, mayoral candidate Waseem Akhtar, opposition leader in Sindh Assembly Khawaja Izharul Hasan and MNA Khalid Maqool Siddiqui gathered outside the KPC before marching to Chief Minister House.

The protesters were carrying earthen water pots and banners inscribed with slogans “thirsty Karachi needs water”, “accelerate work on K-IV project”, “delegate powers to Karachi”, “why Karachi, which generates up to 70 per cent revenue, is deprived of the basic necessity of water” etc.

However, the sit-in came to an end after about three hours on assurances by the government that the city’s lingering water issues would be resolved amicably. The understanding was reached in a meeting between MQM’s Khawaja Izharul Hasan, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Muhammad Hussain and Salman Mujahid and provincial minister Syed Nasir Shah, PPP leader Waqar Mehdi, Commissioner of Karachi Aijaz Ahmed Khan and managing director of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board Misbahuddin Farid at Chief Minister’s House, according to a CM House spokesperson.

Earlier, Dr Farooq Sattar accused, in his speech to the protesters, the Sindh government of ‘creating an artificial water crisis’ in the city.

In an insinuation to the presence of Pakistan Peoples Party leadership in Dubai, the MQM leader alleged: “Water is being stolen to generate billions of rupees, which are being siphoned off to Dubai.”

He said without naming anyone that the provincial government was ‘diverting water share of Karachi to mega projects being constructed outside the metropolis,’ while the citizens were deprived of this basic need.

He pointed out that the proposed mega water project K-IV had been in doldrums since long and alleged the government was not serious in completing this vital project to provide drinking water to the provincial capital.

He suggested that Karachi Corps Commander should seek an ‘explanation’ from the chief minister about delay in completion of the K-IV project.

In a reaction to the MQM’s sit-in and charges against his government, Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said: “The politics of dharna is not a solution to the problem.”

He cautioned the MQM that today it was staging a dharna at C.M. House but tomorrow people might hold a similar dharna at their mayor’s house.

Mr Shah said that he was well aware of the problem of water scarcity in the city and claimed that his government had provided free of cost water tankers to the areas worst affected by water shortage. He was taking ‘necessary measures’ to overcome the problem, he added.

He said the MQM’s sit-in was not ‘constructive politics’. They were establishing a wrong precedent. Their former partners in Sindh government should be ‘practical and do positive politics’, he advised.

“K-1V project has been delayed because of the federal government’s disinterest,” he claimed. The project cost was Rs25 billion but the centre was reluctant to allocate its share of the total amount,” he said.

Mr Shah disclosed that Sindh had allocated more than Rs6 billion for the project and with its completion water storage problem of the city would be resolved for good.

All roads leading to the chief minister’s house were blocked with containers and barricades as long as the protest raged on, causing immense inconvenience to citizens.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2016