LARKANA: A good number of activists belonging to four like-minded Sindhi nationalist groups started a march from Lahori Mohalla, near Rice Canal regulator, to Karachi on Thursday and claimed that several hundred vehicles carrying their party colleagues from different districts were not allowed by police to proceed to the venue.

They also alleged that a crackdown was carried out to foil the march.

The ‘Wahdat-i-Sindh March’ rally was organised by the Jeay Sindh Rahbar Committee — a conglomerate of four Sindhi nationalist groups — against a federal plan to divide provinces into smaller administrative units or carve out more provinces from them. The committee also alleges usurpation of Sindh resources, including water share and lands.

Jeay Sindh Mahaz-Riaz (JSM-R) Chairman Riaz Ali Chandio, Dr Niaz Kalani, Nawaz Khan Zaur and Shabbir Jamali are leading the march, which drew activists from different cities and towns of Sindh in a large number.

Nationalists vow to take march to Karachi ‘despite police excesses’

The participants carried red flags, banners and portraits of their leaders.

In Larkana, strong contingents of police were deployed at different points to maintain law and order. Upon arrival of the march participants at the Lahori Regulator, they moved to block their way. However, the activists managed to remove or climb over the barricades and marched through various areas, including Sukarno Tower, Al-Murtaza House Road and Qaim Shah Bukhari Road to reach the venue — Jinnah Bagh Chowk — where they held a public meeting.

Addressing the protesters and speaking to media personnel, Riaz Chandio claimed that several hundred vehicles carrying people from Shikarpur, Qambar, Shahdadkot and Mirokhan were prevented by police from proceeding to Larkana to join the march. “Dr Niaz Kalani’s convoy was halted,” he added.

“Has an emergency been imposed in Sindh as well?” he wondered.

Mr Chandio said that the ruling party had passed a bill in the assembly declaring that “Sindh is our mother”, it used force against those who took to the streets with the same message. He accused the PPP of seeking to ruin and fragment Sindh. He claimed that the activists coming from different cities to Larkana were stopped at Khairpur Bridge. He condemned the “police excesses and government’s dictatorial actions”.

He criticised the PPP for staying silent during the struggle against six controversial canals to let Punjab take away Sindh’s water share in the Indus River. “The PPP is complicit in the plunder and destruction of Sindh,” he alleged.

Condemning the crackdown to foil the march, Mr Chandio said the committee and its supporters would not be deterred by this oppression, adding that the movement would not withdraw from its struggle to protect the Indus and Sindh’s resources.

He expressed his confidence that hundreds of thousands of marchers would gather in Karachi on Nov 22. He described the roadblocks as “the worst form of dictatorship like martial law which is not acceptable”.

Dr Niaz Kalani, Chairman of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz-Bashir said the PPP could impose Section 144 or even other PPC sections, but people of Sindh would never accept a division of Sindh under any name or slogan.

He said Sindh would not allow its coast to be used as a base of any international power. He warned that if the plan to divide Sindh was pursued, then roads and railway lines leading to Punjab would be blocked.

Jeay Sindh Tahreek Chairman Shabbir Jamali alleged that a conspiracy was afoot to divide Sindh and such a message was being conveyed to the masses through a Punjab minister. “The Punjab Assembly has passed a resolution to divide the province into four units while the Sindh Assembly has never passed a resolution for Sindh’s division, he said.

Jeay Sindh Qaumi Party Chairman Nawaz Khan Zaur pointed out that efforts were made to stop the march, but activists broke through the barriers.

He strongly objected to the idea of handing over of Karachi and Sindh’s coastal areas to the federation. “We will not allow any part of Sindh to be handed over to the federation, nor will we withdraw our claim over Sindh’s resources and water,” he said.

Sit-in against crackdown

Leaders of all four nationalist parties leading the ‘Sindh Unity March’ held a sit-in at the Jinnah Bagh Chowk over a crackdown on activists and alleged detention of several vehicles carrying them.

Larkana DSP Faraz Maitlo held negotiations with Riaz Chandio, Dr Niaz Kalani and others and finally convinced them to end their sit-in.

According to Dr Kalani, the sit-in was ended only after all seven activists and several vehicles were released.

Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2026