HYDERABAD: Almost all political and religious parties, nationalist groups and civil society organisations took part in widespread rallies held across Sindh on Sunday against the controversial plan of digging six canals to irrigate lands in Punjab.

Although Pakistan People Party (PPP) stayed away from the street protests, it also rejected the plan in unequivocal terms.

The major events were held in Hyderabad (where Sindh United Party’s ‘Bedari March’, which was started from Sakrand, culminated outside the local press club) and Larkana (where leaders of Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), Jamat-i-Islami (JI), Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and other parties addressed participants of a rally.

In Hyderabad, leaders of the ‘Save River Indus Movement’ — formed by GDA component parties and several other nationalist groups — spoke to the participants of the ‘Bedari March’ upon its arrival at Nasim Nagar Chowk, Qasimabad, from Sakrand.

In their fiery speeches, the leaders strongly opposed the canal project and demanded that it be shelved because “it is bound to undermine Sindh’s very existence”.

SUP President Syed Zain Shah, who led the Bedari March said that six more canals were being dug illegally which would prove to be death knell for Sindh province.

He wondered that until 1975, Sindh had been owner of 75pc of the Indus River and other provincial resources but in 1991, it was told that it owned only 40pc.

He said injustices had always been committed against Sindh and this treatment was still continuing.

He held PPP equally responsible for it. He said the proposed Cholistan canal was not a canal alone but an entire system with multiple phases. Sindh had rejected the Greater Thal Canal (GTC) but now its phase-II was being launched, he deplored.

He alleged that a conspiracy was being hatched to render Sindh barren and cultivate six million acres of land in Sindh through Cholistan, GTC and other water channels.

The sea was devouring 100,000 acres in Sindh on a daily basis, he claimed.

Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) President Ayaz Latif Palijo said that rulers had destroyed agriculture sector of Sindh and if these six canals were dug, then Sindh would lose its water flows.

He warned that usurpation of Sindh’s water, lands, islands and minerals would not be tolerated.

He described the Indus River System Authority (Irsa), CDP, and CCI as ‘biased institutions’ arguing that despite Sindh’s reservations, CDWP cleared the canals project.

Other leaders who also spoke at the rally included Lal Shah of Awami Jamhoori Party, Maulana Taj Mohammad Nahiyoon of JUI-F, Rafiq Magsi of PML-Functional and Tahir Majeed of JI.

In Larkana, GDA General Secretary Dr Safdar Abbasi, JI Sindh chief Kashif Saeed Shaikh, SUP leader Dr Mazhar Mughal, JUI-F leader Muhabbat Khuhro, PTI leader Rauf Korai and others led a protest rally which started from Bagh-i-Zulfikar and marched through various roads and streets.

The participants finally converged on the local press club where the leaders addressed them.

The protesters raising slogans against the canals project resolved to stand against it and also resist any amendment to the Irsa Act.

The leaders said that the project would be disastrous for Sindh. They alleged that for long, attempts were being made to turn Sindh dry and ruin its agriculture sector through calculated moves.

They vehemently criticised PPP for its double-faced policies, claiming that President Asif Ali Zardari had on July 8 given the go-ahead to the canals project while other PPP leaders in Sindh kept opposing it.

They urged people of Sindh to come out of slumber to resist “anti-people projects aimed at ruining Sindh”.

They claimed that the spade work for four of the six canals was in full swing. “This is economic murder of haris (farmers). The project would cast a disastrous impact on wheat, sugar cane, rice, cotton, banana and other crops, besides severely affecting the echo system of Indus,” they warned.

Rallies and demonstrations against the controversial canals project were also held in many other cities and towns, including Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Naushahro Feroze, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Dadu and Jamshoro.

PPP explains its stance

Sindh government spokesman and Sukkur Mayor Barrister Arsalan Islam Shaikh said on Sunday that PPP and Sindh government had made it clear that they would not compromise on Sindh’s share of water and would not tolerate any manipulation of the share.

Addressing a press conference in his office, he said distribution of water from the Indus River was unacceptable.

“Every child in Sindh is aware that whether it’s the Kalabagh Dam or the Greater Thal Canal, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto had adopted a principled stance on Sindh’s water issue on behalf of the PPP at Kamoon Shaheed protest,” he said.

He added that PPP stood firm on this stance even today. “There is a misleading narrative on social media suggesting that the party supports the canals project,” he said.

“People of Cholistan are our people and we want their prosperity, but this is not the way to build canals on Sindh’s water. The PPP will adopt constitutional and democratic methods to fight Sindh’s case,” he said.

Mr Shaikh described Dharna [sit-in] as an undemocratic way, and remarked that the country’s economy had suffered significant losses due to protests and sit-ins.

He said that the Irsa Act provided a comprehensive mechanism for resolving water disputes between provinces, with procedures outlined in Articles 153 to 155 of the Constitution.

He recalled that Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had formally registered a protest in the Council of Common Interests (CCI) regarding this matter.

“If no hearing is conducted, we will take it up in the joint session of the parliament,” he added. If the issue was still not resolved, the option of Constitutional Court was open to us, he said. “We will not allow Sindh’s lands to become barren,” he said.

Cholistan’s water problem could be solved through innovation and modern technology, said Mr Shaikh, adding that Rs211 billion was estimated to be incurred in digging these canals; these funds should be spent on modern technology and innovation to resolve Cholistan’s water issue.

He said Sindh had always offered sacrifices. “We [PPP] have consistently championed the slogan of ‘Pakistan Khappy’ which does not translate into compromise on Sindh’s water rights,” he remarked.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2024