KARACHI, Sept 25: Sindh United Party (SUP) president and Sindh Bachayo Committee (SBC) convener Syed Jalal Mehmood Shah has announced that only highways will be blocked on Wednesday in protest against the Sindh People’s Local Government Ordinance, 2012.

Explaining the nature of protest for which the SBC has given a call for province-wide wheel-jam strike, Mr Shah categorically stated that life in cities and towns would remain normal as there would be no shutter-down and no disturbance in the routine educational, business, trade or other activities.

He, however, appealed to public transport operators and the general public not to bring their vehicles on highways.

Speaking at a press conference at Hyder Manzil to brief the media about the second phase of the anti-SLGPO protest, he said that the SBC believed in politics of non-violence and in line with its policy, it had planned a peaceful protest.

Dr Safdar Sarki of the Jeay Sindh Tehrik, Aziz Phul of the Sindh National Movement, Siddique Agha of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, Mufti Muhammad Hasan of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl and Elahi Bux Bukik of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz were also present at the press conference.

The SUP chief cautioned nationalist parties and groups, most of whom are backing the protest, to keep a close watch on miscreants who he said could infiltrate their ranks to shatter peace and blame violence on protesters.

Commenting on the fresh three-day ultimatum given by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) to get its demands accepted, Mr Shah said a ‘Noora Kushti’ (fixed match) was under way between the two Sindh coalition partners. “MQM wants to grab the office of the leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly as the seat plays a very important role in the setting up of the caretaker government before the upcoming elections,” he speculated.

If it was not so, he added, both parties should make public all details of their deal on power-sharing and the PPP must repeal the SPLGO.

The SBC chief also offered a media dialogue with Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah or his nominee on the ordinance, and said Sindh people had genuine reservations over the law, particularly its 35 sections.

In reply to a question, he said that that during the Wednesday protest sit-ins would be staged on highways to block movement of all vehicular traffic to and from Hyderabad, Sukkur, Dadu, Nawabshah, Ghotki, Larkana, Shikarpur, Thatta, Badin and other cities and towns of Sindh.

“If the SPLGO is not withdrawn, no PPP lawmaker will be welcomed by his own electorates in his own constituency,” he warned while replying to another question.