HYDERABAD: At a consultation session held here on Saturday, leaders of various nationalist parties and groups adopted several resolutions and called for the arrest of all those involved in the extrajudicial killing of blasphemy suspect Dr Shahnawaz Kunbhar and torching of his body.

The session was chaired by Jeay Sindh Mahaz-R Chairman Riaz Chandio.

One of the resolutions called for the appointment of a judicial commission headed by serving high court judges which, it stressed, should submit its report within a month. It said that all those found involved in the incidents must be punished.

It condemned “provocative” speeches made by certain clerics against Hindus.

Through another resolution, a committee titled ‘Justice for Dr Shahnawaz’ was formed. It is headed by former student leader Ismail Wassan with Dr Badar Channa being its secretary.

Water distribution

Yet another resolution called for distribution of irrigation water between Sindh and Punjab under the relevant mutual agreement. It rejected creation of canals in violation of this agreement, and said that no new canal should be constructed.

In his presidential address, Riaz Chandio condemned that after the extrajudicial killing of Dr Shahnawaz, his body was torched “in the presence of police” which, he said was height of injustice. He said that this incident had led to a dangerous and negative exposure of Sindh before the world community.

Chandio regretted said that even when it was established by an official committee that the extrajudicial murder had been committed, no action was taken.

He said that all suspect should have been arrested after the official report but the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party did not take any action against the [police] officers involved in the murder.

He alleged that the PPP government patronised armed religious elements and Pirs who gathered in Umerkot to create terror and fear. “The murderers were portrayed as heroes,” he deplored, and remarked that the concept of rule of law in Sindh had vanished.

He also wondered that when Sindh’s civil society had already scheduled a rally in Karachi on the issue of Dr Kunbhar’s custodial death and desecration of his body, the PPP government also allowed the TLP to hold its rally at the same venue and time which, he claimed, “is aimed at fomenting religious riots”.

He said that Punjab had planned six new canals over Indus. He said that federal government was grabbing lacs of acres of land illegally, and claimed that the PPP government had handed over all its powers to Islamabad and federal government had allowed “loot of all tourist resources”.

Dacoits’ rule

The JSM-R chief noted that two divisions of upper Sindh were under the rule of dacoit gangs, which were kidnapping people and killing them at whim.

The session was attended by Dr Niaz Kalnai of Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Nawaz Khan Zaunr of JSQM-P, Porhiyat Mazahamat leader Masroor Shah, Sindh Sufi Forum’s Dr Badar Channa, Advocate Ramesh Gupta, Mushtaq Mirani, Altaf Khaskheli of Qaumi Awami Tehreek and others.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2024