HYDERABAD, Jan 15: A senior leader and ideologue of Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM) Abdul Wahid Arisar has described as illegal, unconstitutional and immoral the reinstatement of Basheer Khan Qureshi as chairman of the party and restoration of central body.

Mr. Arisar told a news conference at the press club on Monday that the central body had no legal standing as it had been restored by only two members of central organising committee Mohammad Rahimoon and Sarfaraz and the latter had earlier distanced himself from the body after a dispute with committee chairman Shafi Karnani.

The two had a fight over something at a meeting of the central organising committee on December 6, which led to Mr. Karnani’s resignation from the post and Mr. Sarfaraz’s disassociation from the committee, he recalled.

The matter was referred to GMS council to decide, which was to meet on December 10 but before that date Mr. Sarfaraz and Mr. Rahimoon announced the reinstatement of Basheer Qureshi as chairman and restoration of central body, as act which Mr. Arisar saw as absolutely illegal, unconstitutional and immoral.

The party had started a freedom march from Larkana on January 10 in a bid to refresh in minds the ideology of G. M. Syed who had announced in 1972 that it was impossible for Sindh to remain within the framework of Pakistan and accept Punjab’s hegemony, he said.

Late Syed used to exhort his followers to launch struggle for an independent Sindhu Desh and as long as he was alive, he would have them take pledge every year on his birthday to continue struggle, he said.

The JSQM was founded in 1995 but with passage of time some people forgot Syed’s ideology and encouraged workers to raise slogans in favour of certain people and the struggle for Sindhu Desh was reduced to a farce.

He said that the freedom marchers had feared the government would use bullets to stop their march but instead "our own people have stabbed us in the back by declaring that they have nothing to do with the march". The marchers would reach Sann on January 17 to take part in the birthday celebrations of G. M. Syed, he said.

Referring to an appeal of Syed Ameer Hyder Shah, son of late G. M. Syed, calling upon him (Arisar) and Basheer Qureshi to patch up, he said that he held Mr. Shah in high esteem and took his appeal as a command but he was unable to compromise on the ideology and mission of G. M. Syed.

To a question about possibility of a confrontation between the JSQM workers at the birth anniversary of G. M. Syed, Mr. Arisar said that Sann was a "political ka`aba" for Jeay Sindh workers and its sanctity would be respected.

He said that he would take full responsibility for his workers and expressed the hope that Mr. Qureshi would also respect Syed’s mazar.

Asked about chances of a rapprochement between him and Mr. Qureshi, Mr. Arisar replied that there were huge differences between Subhash Chandar Bose and Gandhi. Still, when Bose founded the Indian Liberation Army, he named his battalions after Gandhi, Azad and Nehru.

Riaz Chandio, Dhani Bux Solangi, Pyaro Khan Shar and Ali Hassan Chandio (member organising committee) were also present on the occasion.