KARACHI, June 27: The continuing protest over the Thal canal project has created a row between the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal.

Maulana Asadullah Bhutto of the MMA has accused the MQM of maintaining double standards on the issue because on the one hand it supported the allocations in the federal budget for the project, and on the other it was criticising the project in the province.

Maulana Bhutto alleged the governments of Sindh and Punjab had complicated the issue by issuing controversial statements and termed it an attempt to create a rift between the two provinces.

He declared that any attempts to raise demands for Sindhudesh in the cover of anti-Thal canal protests would not be acceptable as it was detrimental to Pakistan’s integrity.

Meanwhile, the MQM MPAs rejected the MMA criticizm and claimed that it had always pursued policies that would strengthen Pakistan’s integrity.

They claimed that the MQM-JSQM rally in Karachi had internationalized the Thal canal issue and the MMA was trying to mislead the people by giving it a wrong colour.