THATTA, June 21: Fifty-six activists and office-bearers of the Pakistan People’s Party, including two members of the PPP Sindh council, resigned on Wednesday in protest against termination of their basic membership and issuance of show-cause notices by the party’s provincial head.

The decision came at the end of a crucial eight-hour long meeting of dissidents at the residence of PPP MPA Sassui Palijo. Ms Sassui’s father, former MPA Ghulam Qadir Palijo, presided over the meeting.

A source told this scribe that the resignations were being sent that day to the party’s provincial chief, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, with a note expressing strong protest over his ‘undemocratic and unconstitutional action against nine taluka presidents and members of Sindh council from Thatta’.

A spokesman for the dissidents told reporters that three diehard party workers announced at the meeting that they would commit self-immolation if the party chairperson, Ms Benazir Bhutto, did not take notice within shortest possible time of the organisational crisis in the district.

A group of party workers led by nine taluka presidents who were opposed to the provincial chief’s decision to form a new district body for Thatta comprising former MNA Arbab Wazir Memon as its president and Pir Rehman as general secretary had staged a demonstration in front of Bilawal House in Karachi to register their protest.

Instead, they received show-cause notices and letters terminating their basic membership from the party’s provincial chief, Syed Qaim Ali Shah.

Prominent among the deserters are: members of PPP Sindh council, Sardar Luqman Malkani and Abdul Sattar Lohar; district secretary coordination, Usman Kumbhar; president of Keti Bunder taluka, Ayoub Shaikh; president of union council Mirpur Sakro, Umer Soomro; general secretary Majid Chand, president of cultural wing PPP Thatta, Sooraj Sujawal and others.