• Muttahida, Jamaat, ANP, PML factions participate in rally organised by PPP
• Leaders vow to deliver a ‘befitting response’ to New Delhi
• Murad praises PAF for shooting down five Indian aircraft

KARACHI: A large number of charged workers of different political parties and civil rights campaigners on Wednesday attended a ‘solidarity rally’ taken out by the Pakistan Peoples Party to show unity against the Indian aggression and attacks on innocent civilians.

The rally participants pledged that they would give a befitting response to India together.

Carrying national flags and their parties’ flags, the workers of different political parties, including women and elderly, chanted slogans against India in front of the Karachi Press Club.

The political leaders said that they might have millions of differences, but when it came to defend Pakistan, they were all together.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and several leaders of different political parties, including Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, PML-Q, Awami National Party and Jamaat-i-Islami addressed the rally.

International Pakistani Boxers Shaheer Afridi and Muhammad Usman, who had defeated Indian boxers in two separate competitions were also present in the solidarity rally.

The speakers included PPP-Sindh general secretary Senator-elect Waqar Mehdi, Sindh Local Government Minister and PPP Karachi president Saeed Ghani, MQM-P’s Iftikhar Alam, Sindh president of PML-Q Niaz Khaskheli, ANP’s Shahi Syed, Ali Akbar Gujjar of PML-N and JI Karachi chief Munem Zafar.

Addressing the rally, the chief minister condemned India’s unfounded allegations against Pakistan following the Pahalgam incident and described Indian prime minister Narendra Modi as the “Butcher of Gujarat”.

The chief minister said Modi orchestrated the incident to divert attention away from his domestic failures.

“Within just 10 minutes, Pakistan was blamed without any investigation,” Mr Shah said, emphasising that Pakistan had always been a victim of terrorism and consistently offered international investigations into the matter from the outset.

He said that Pakistan’s civil and military leadership had reached out to the global community, including the United Nations, offering full cooperation and mediation.

“However, India rejected these gestures of peace and instead launched night-time attacks on six separate locations, resulting in deaths of innocent civilians,” he added.

The chief minister said that Pakistani armed forces responded in a manner that forced India to wave the white flag within hours. “Pakistan Air Force shot down five Indian aircraft and a drone. We held back only to avoid escalation; otherwise, not a single Indian jet would have survived,” he added.

The chief minister proudly noted the presence of athletes who had recently defeated Indian boxers at the event, further boosting national morale.

“In just a few hours, representatives from all political parties stood united with our armed forces,” he concluded his speech, leading the crowd with impassioned chants of “Pakistan Zindabad”.

The chief minister reaffirmed that if necessary, the nation’s 250 million citizens are prepared to sacrifice even the last drop of their blood for Pakistan.

LG Minister Ghani said that this was a unique demonstration in which all political parties were united on one platform and agenda, putting aside their political and ideological differences.

He said that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf was also supposed to attend this demonstration, but one of their [PTI’s] rallies was already scheduled at that time, otherwise they would also be here in solidarity with the rally.

The LG minister said that people from the Christian and Hindu communities were also participating in this solidarity demonstration in large numbers and they were also protesting against the Indian aggression.

MQM-P’s Parliamentary Party Leader in the Sindh Assembly Iftikhar Alam said that solidarity rally was a message to Modi that the Pakistani nation was more organised than before. “Nation stands by its Pakistani army,” he said.

Mr Alam said that the Pakistan’s armed forces had made not only Pakistan but also the Muslim Ummah proud.

“We may have millions of differences, but when it comes to Pakistan, we will together give a befitting reply to India,” he added.

JI’s Muneem Zafar said that the show of solidarity by the political parties was a message to India and Modi that the entire Pakistani nation condemned the cowardly attack in the dark of night.

Ali Akbar Gujjar of the PML-N said that the PPP had gathered this bouquet of political parties today to express solidarity and sent a message to the entire nation that “Pakistan is our mother, if anyone casts a malicious eye on it, we will all come together and fight it,” he added.

PML-Q’s Niaz Khaskheli said that India had carried out a cowardly attack and the Pakistan army had silenced the Indian Army within a few hours. “The entire nation is united with the Pakistani army, regardless of political differences,” he added.

Member of Sindh Assembly Sham Sundar said that the Pakistan army had bravely fought back the Indian attack.

“The Hindu community of Pakistan considers Pakistan as its motherland and we will not hesitate to sacrifice our lives to protect it,” he vowed.

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2025