HYDERABAD: Five like-minded nationalist parties announced on Friday formation of ‘Jeay Sindh Rahbar Committee’ to launch joint resistance against seven crucial issues of bargaining away Sindh’s resources, settlement of foreigners in the province, plans for building dams on the Indus River, construction of mega residential projects, flawed digital census, human rights violations and denial of national status to the Sindhi language.

Jeay Sindh Mahaz-Riaz (JSM-R) chairman Riaz Ali Chandio said at a press conference after chairing the first meeting of the newly-formed forum as its convener at his residence here on Friday that the committee would hold a rally in Sukkur on Sept 17 to formally launch the joint struggle.

He said the committee comprising leaders of the five parties including him, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz-Arisar’s Aslam Khairpuri, JSQM-Bashir leader Dr Niaz Kalani, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Party chairman Nawaz Khan Zaunr, Jeay Sindh Tehreek leader Sooriyah Sindhi and others rejected government decision of handing over 20,000 acres of land owned by Karachi Port, Port Qasim and Pakistan Steel Mills to investors.

He said that Sindh’s resources were peoples’ assets while loans were obtained by rulers, hence people were not supposed to bear the burden of their loans. The Karachi Port was Sindh’s asset as it was neither built by federal government nor British colonisers, he said.

He said the port was run by Sindh during British era and after Pakistan’s creation it was placed under the federal government, which was not authorised to hand it over to another country.

Similarly, he said, that Pakistan Steel Mills and Port Qasim were also Sindh’s assets and cautioned those countries showing interest in these assets against signing any deals with the government.

He said that Sindh and its people were sole owners of these assets although people of the resource-rich Sindh were made to face food insecurity. All illegal immigrants including Afghans should be repatriated to their home countries as they were a direct burden on Sindh’s resources, he said.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2023