Protests against Kalabagh dam plan continue
HYDERABAD: More rallies and demonstrations were held in different parts of Sindh on Tuesday to oppose construction of Kalabagh dam as leaders of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party, nationalist outfits and civil society organisations continued to criticise moves to revive the “dead issue”.
Known activists Punhal Sario, Jami Chandio, Mohammed Ali Shah, Mushtaq Mirani, Mukhtiar Abbasi, Zulfiqar Halepoto, Noor Ahmed Katiar, Apa Nazeer Qureshi and others led a rally of civil society organisations who gathered outside the local press club and raised slogans against the dam.
The activists vowed to resist construction of any new dam over the Indus.
They called for upholding democratic values and respecting aspirations of the masses. If Constitution and law were trampled over, it would be difficult for the country to survive, they said.
They were of the view that a decision on such issues should only be taken by the Council of Common Interests (CCI).
The activists contested the Supreme Court chief justice’s view that Article 6 (high treason) of the Constitution could be invoked against those opposing [Bhasha] dam, and argued that any citizen whose fundamental rights were jeopardised could raise his voice.
Meanwhile, the Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) has finalised its plan to hold a series of protests and observe hunger strike across Sindh from Sept 23 to 26 against the Kalabagh dam plan and the PM’s proposal to issue CNICs to immigrants in Karachi, according to a QAT statement issued here on Tuesday.