BADIN: Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) chief Rasool Bux Palijo sees resurrection of the controversial Kalabagh dam project as part of a conspiracy against the federation and the country’s solidarity.

The octogenarian politician, who led a rally taken out by party workers, mostly activists of the party’s women wing, Sindhyani Tehreek, against the dam here on Sunday, said that three provincial assemblies had already rejected the controversial project but still the prime minister’s aides were ill-advising him to go ahead with the project.

The people of Sindh, Balo­chistan and Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa would never allow construction of the dam, he said.

Mr Palijo said that some people in Punjab wanted to drive a wedge between provinces and lashed out at Nawaz Sharif for his anti-Sindh policies.

He accused the feudal lords of keeping silent over the Centre’s attempts to usurp the rights of Sindh and warned if the government did not stop conspiring against Sindh they would start a movement against it in the province.

He said the federation should not be given priority over national interests. Sindh would not accept any dam on Indus as it would be tantamount to signing death warrant for the province, he said.

The gathering passed a resolution, demanding the federal government should clarify its position on the controversial dam project.

In Jacobabad, PPP MNA Mir Aijaz Hussain Jakhrani said at a press conference at PPP complaint centre on Saturday night that PML-N was trying to garner support among its voters by resurrecting the dead horse of Kalabagh dam during election campaign. “But we will not accept construction of the controversial dam at any cost,” he warned.

He said that the PPP’s prime minister had opposed the dam’s construction and the assemblies of three provinces had also rejected the project.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2015

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