HYDERABAD: A joint consultative meeting of the Youth Action Committee (YAC), Women Democratic Front (WDF) and Women’s Action Forum (WAF) was held here on Saturday to decide a future course of action amid the situation arising out of the Sept 19 custodial killing of blasphemy suspect Dr Shah Nawaz Kunbhar in Mirpurkhas.

The suspect was arrested in Karachi on Sept 18 amid a violent reaction in Umerkot, where he lived, over his supposed social media posts.

The joint meeting of the three entities decided to hold a rally in Karachi on Oct 13 against Dr Kunbhar’s extrajudicial killing. It was attended by Sindhu Nawaz Ghangro, Comrade Alia Bukhshal, Dr Arfana Malah, Amar Sindhu and Dr Bakhtawar Jam. The meeting expressed its concern over delay in the arrest of the suspects nominated in the FIR of the doctor’s murder.

It noted that Sindh government looked helpless before fundamentalists, instead of arresting those booked in the FIR and providing protection to his family. It recalled that a religious group had held a rally in Umerkot where its leaders had threatened Dr Kunbhar’s family and religious minorities.

The meeting said that writ of Sindh government was not seen in Umerkot, where people remained scared. The elected National Assembly member from Nagarparkar has become a party with the nominated suspects, according to the participants. who also alleged that the MNA was creating hurdles in the dispensation of justice. They urged the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leadership to unseat the MNA.

The meeting also called upon Sindh government to order a judicial probe through a commission on the custodial killing and related incidents.

It demanded that Dr Kunbhar’s body should be exhumed for a postmortem examination. It observed that armed groups in an organised manner were harassing and intimidating Dr Kunbhar’s family, religious minorities and peaceful citizens in Umerkot. It demanded protection for those who were raising their voice on the issue.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2024