KARACHI: The Save Indus River Movement (SIRM), an alliance of different opposition parties formed to resist the controversial canals project, has announced a public rally in Karachi on May 11 for the supremacy of the Constitution in response to the concerns about controversial irrigation projects.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting, hosted by the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, here on Wednesday.
According to a statement, the meeting, chaired by SIRM chief Zain Shah, emphasised that the controversial canal projects on the Indus River had been temporarily postponed due to mounting public pressure and underlying threats to Sindh’s water rights remained unresolved.
The meeting condemned the recent notification issued by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) concerning the disputed canals, declaring it unconstitutional and in violation of Article 155(2)C of the Constitution.
The participants said that the decision effectively handed control of Sindh’s water resources to bureaucrats, posing a renewed risk of violation on the province’s water share at any time.
The speakers paid tribute to the conscious struggle of Sindh’s people, including farmers, lawyers, students, workers, and journalists, for resisting the canal projects.
They stated that such collective resistance led to the government’s temporary withdrawal from the new canal project on the Indus river.
The forum also called for the immediate cancellation of agricultural land leases granted to foreign companies under the corporate farming schemes.
It urged the use of modern agricultural technologies to boost productivity on existing fertile lands across Sindh, Punjab, and other parts of the country instead.
The meeting participants demanded that President Asif Zardari tender a public apology to the people of Sindh for his alleged role in the canals project.
They reiterated that true power lies with the people and emphasised the need for continued grassroots mobilisation.
The forum rejected what it called “Form-47-installed fake governments,” arguing that national progress was impossible without genuine representatives of the public.
The meeting was attended by Grand Democratic Alliance leaders Pir Syed Sadruddin Shah Rashdi, Dr Safdar Abbasi, Sardar Abdur Rahim, Hasnain Mirza and Raheela Magsi; PTI leaders Haleem Adil Sheikh, Dr Masroor Sial, Raja Azhar and Arslan Khalid; Jamaat-i-Islami’s Muhammad Yousuf and Mujahid Channa; Jeay Sindh Mahaz’s Riaz Chandio; Awami Jamhoori Party’s Parvez Abro; Qaumi Awami Tehreek’s Mazhar Rahujo and Farhan Larak; and National Peoples Party’s Masroor Jatoi.
Published in Dawn, May 1st, 2025
