SUKKUR, Oct 26: In a massive show of strength depicting Sindh’s resentment against proposed privatisation of profit-earning Qadirpur gas field, thousands of people, including workers of the gas field and political activists, demonstrated outside the gas field and staged a sit-in on the National Highway near Ghotki bypass on Sunday.

The protesters, led by Oil and Gas Development Company Mazdoor Ittehad Union President Chaudhry Mohammad Akram and Sindh United Party leader Jalal Mehmood Shah and others, after staging a protest demonstration outside the main gate of the gas field, marched towards the highway, where they staged a sit-in near Ghotki bypass for four hours, virtually cutting off Sindh’s link with Punjab.

Due to the biggest-ever sit-in in the history of Ghotki, vehicular traffic at the 60km section of the highway from Rohri to Ghotki and the 55km section from Ghotki to Chowk Mari remained suspended for four hours and hundreds of trucks, trailers and other vehicles remained stranded.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Shah alleged that Sindh’s resources were being sold in the name of privatisation. He warned the government: “We will fight it out till our last breath to save the resources of Sindh from being auctioned at throwaway price”.

He said that those who had come to power by using Shaheed Benazir Bhutto card were selling the resources of Sindh. He urged nationalist parties of Sindh to come forward and struggle for the just right of Sindh and Sindhis, saying otherwise the rulers would sell each and every resource of Sindh.

Mr Shah said that they would extend their protests to every nook and corner of the country if the government did not reverse its decision to privatise Qadirpur gas field.

He said that earlier the government had privatised Pak-Saudi Fertiliser which, too, was a profit-earning unit, rendering hundreds of local youths jobless. Now people from neighbouring province were being provided jobs at the fertiliser plant, he added.

He said that they would move the superior court of the country in this regard and urged the labour unions to join hands with Sindh United Party to force the government to desist from auctioning Sindh’s resources.

Terming Qadirpur gas field as one of the biggest fields in Asia, SUP leader Syed Zain Shah accused a particular province for hatching conspiracies against Sindh and said that it was painful that leaders belonging to Sindh were also supporting such elements in the parliament. He urged people of Sindh to open their eyes and differentiate between friends and foes, otherwise their future would be at stake.

Chaudhry Akram while slamming the government for proposed privatisation of Qadirpur gas field, said that workers of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) and Pakistan Muslim League (N) were also present in today’s protest and urged their leaders sitting in the parliament to raise voice against the privatisation of Qadirpur gas field.

OGDCL Mazdoor Ittehad Union Joint Secretary Zahid Bhutto vowed to fight against privatisation of the gas field till last drop of their blood and threatened: “we will also resort to self-immolation if needed”.

Quoting figures, he said that Qadirpur gas field was earning a profit of Rs36billion per year, but neither schools are established for the children of the workers nor funds meant for the welfare of workers were being utilised properly.

Workers of the Dawat-i-Islami, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (F), Pakistan Muslim League (N), Jamiat Ulema-i- Pakistan, Sindh National Front, Sindh United Party, Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party and others participated in the protest.

Robbers held: Rohri police arrested two alleged robbers while a policeman was injured in an encounter near Achhi Kubion near Rohri on Sunday.

According to police sources, a police party was on routine patrol. When it reached near Achhi Kubion, three armed robbers, who were hiding there, opened fire upon the police, which was returned. As a result a policeman Nazar Mohammad received injuries.

However, police managed to arrest two robbers Arif Hussain Maitlo and Ali Mardan Shaikh, while their third accomplice escaped.