KHAIRPUR, July 21: Thou-sands of activists belonging to the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz, Sindh National Front, Sindh Hari Committee and other nationalist organisations held a demonstration at the Babarloi bypass on Friday in protest against disappearance of activists of nationalist parties and water shortage in Sindh.

JSQM chairman Basheer Qureshi led the protesters.

The protesters burnt tyres on the National Highway and closed it for traffic for about one hour.

As a result, hundreds of vehicles heading to Khairpur, Therhi, Shah Hussain chowk, Ranipur and other routes via the National Highway were stopped.

Vehicles from Karachi to Punjab and from Punjab, the NWFP, Balochistan to Karachi remained stranded for hours due which passengers faced hardships.

Speaking on the occasion, Basheer Qureshi said that JSQM leaders Dr Safdar Sarki, Asif Baladi, Manjhi Chandio and Akash Mallah had been picked up by government agencies and being held incommunicado.

He said that their mysterious disappearance had led to suspect that they would be killed after torture.

He said that protest demonstrations would continue till the release of JSQM leaders.

He said that bodies recovered from Sukkur, Khairpur, Pano Akil and other areas were of nationalist activists belonging to Sindh and Balochistan who had been tortured to death.

He said that killing activists was a part of a series of injustice with Sindh and its people.

He said that there was an artificial shortage of water in Sindh and people, including men, women and children, had been protesting against it but Punjab was not ready to release water to Sindh.

He said that by stopping water, Punjab was using a weapon against the people of Sindh to kill them economically.

He said that all routes and roads to Punjab would be blocked if Punjab continued to use water as weapon against Sindh.

He said that processions and demonstrations would continue till injustice against Sindh was not stopped.

Mr Qureshi announced that the next demonstration would be held in Hyderabad on August 27.

He said that JSQM workers had been detained by the Lakhi police and urged all protesters to go the Lakhi police station and stage a demonstration till the release of activists.

He said that if the government conducted a survey, it would find that thousands of acres land could not be irrigated particularly in Larkana, Jacobabad, Shikar-pur and Qambar-Shahdadkot districts.

A case was registered against 600 activists of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz in connection with the protest demonstration at the Babarloi bypass.

Those named in the FIR are: JSQM chairman Bashir Qureshi, district president Amjad Mahesar, Dr Niaz Kalani, Hafiz Hakro, Kehar Ansari, Riaz Chandio, Rehan Jatoi and Fayaz.