HYDERABAD, May 28: A debate on May 12 Karachi killings was not allowed by the convener of the district council, Zafar Ali Rajput, on Monday on the ground that the matter is sub-judice before the Sindh High Court which has taken suo motu notice of the issue.

“Except for fateha khawani over killings of innocent people in Karachi on May 12, I can’t allow any debate on the issue because the matter is sub-judice before court”, responded the convener when a member, Mehboob Abro, asked him to allow the debate.

When the session began, Rashid Khan rose on a point of order and asked the chair to hold fateha for those who died on May 12 in Karachi and subsequent events. He was backed by Yamin Soomro of the Awam Dost Panel (ADP) who said that fateha should also be offered for those who died in Peshawar bomb explosion.

However, Mehboob Abro argued: “We can’t remain silent because innocent people had lost their lives. We are not committing any contempt of court by discussing the matter in the house. We must discuss who are responsible for blocking roads with containers”, he said. A resolution should be adopted by the house to condemn killings and demand punishment for those who planned the violence, he said.

The chair, however, interrupted and said that he couldn't allow any such debate in view of Sindh High Court's suo motu notice of the matter.

His contention was supported by MMA-backed Hussain Bux Hussaini, who agreed with the chair that debate shouldn't be allowed and added that had it not been a matter now pending before court such debate would have taken place.

The chair referred two Citizen Community Board (CCB) schemes to council's CCB committee for vetting and approval before they could be passed by the house.

The schemes pertained to establishment of graveyard in Ganju Takakr taluka Latifabad by Human Welfare CCB, registered with the district government.

The members, including Rashid Khan, Munawar Khan Zai, Hussain Bux Hussaini and Nasir Baloch appreciated the scheme by saying that a graveyard is needed in the city because the existing ones had no space for burying the dead.

They said that certain irregularities also came to the fore in the existing graveyards.

The other scheme is related to Rajput CCB in taluka Hyderabad (rural) pertaining to construction of additional class rooms in union council-11, at an estimated cost of Rs2.23 million and required share of CCB itself had been committed.