KARACHI, Aug 11: The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal has asked the government to declare Karachi ‘calamity-hit area’ as the recent monsoon rains had not only caused colossal losses to its citizens, but have also rendered hundreds of people homeless. The opposition alliance demanded that people of Karachi be granted exemption from all taxes for the current year.

The demand was made by Mohammad Siddique Rathor, chief of MMA Karachi, at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club on Friday.

Referring to the situation arising out of the natural calamity in the city, he said that the rains had played havoc with the life and property of Karachiites causing heavy loss of life and widespread damage. He said that the city’s infrastructure had sustained heavy damage and citizens across the city were deprived of every civic facility.

The MMA leader also claimed that people were feeling insecure due to the rampant incidents of theft, dacoity, kidnapping and plunder, which had become order of the day.

He severely criticised the authorities for failing to arrest culprits of the April 11 Nishtar Park bombing even after four months now. He made a fresh appeal to the authorities to expose the terrorists and given them exemplary punishment.

Mr Rathor also condemned Israeli invasion of Lebanon and attacks on civilians there, and said that the Zionist forces backed the US were indulged in massacre of innocent people, including women and children, for weeks together.

He regretted that even the OIC had failed to check the US-backed Zionist conspiracy against the unarmed people of Lebanon.He criticised the UN Security Council for its utter failure in playing its due role in stopping the carnage in Lebanon. The UN has become a tool of the United States and, as such, all Muslim states should now quit the UN and review their strategy against anti-Muslim forces at their own forum.

The MMA leader also expressed grave concern over the unprecedented price-hike in the country, and said that the common man was finding it very difficult to survive while quite a big number of people had already committed suicide.