HYDERABAD, July 28: Activists of a number of nationalist parties held a protest march on Thursday against a private television channel for hosting a show on the issue of a new province in Sindh.

Supporters of Paigham Sindh Forum marched from Qasimabad to Hyderabad press club and demonstrated at Naseem Nagar chowk, Wahdat colony, Gul Centre and Hyder Chowk

They raised slogans against the media group and burnt its effigy in front of the press club. They removed a signboard of the channel. Most of the protesters carried flags of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz.

Speaking on the occasion, JSQM chairman Basheer Khan Qureshi, Mohammad Rahimoon, Dr Niaz Kalani, Arisar group leader Nawaz Khan Zounr, Punhal Sario and Akash Mallah said through its history of thousands of years Sindh had always remained united and independent.

“We will not accept any conspiracy against our motherland,” they said. The debate hosted by the channel, they said, had hurt the feelings of the Sindhi nation.

The people of Sindh considered it a sin to even think about a division of Sindh. They said that unless the media group tendered an apology to the Sindhi nation, they would continue to voice their anger against the group. They accused Punjab of hatching a conspiracy against Sindh.

Basheer Khan Qureshi called upon the Urdu-speaking people not to become part of this conspiracy. He said the MQM must make its stance clear in public.

He accused the PPP of being an agent of Punjab and said that while innocent people were being killed in Karachi, the government was claiming that everything was fine. He said terrorists were being produced by the PPP Aman Committee, ANP and the Afaq group.

He said the media group would have to apologise to the Sindhi nation and stop using the words of Karachi and Sindh as separate entities. Other leaders also severely criticised the media group. STP:

Activists of Sindh Taraqi Passand Party led by Dr Abdul Hameed Memon, Zafar Solangi and Sachal Gopang took out a procession from the old campus to the press club.

They warned the media group of consequences if it did tender an apology to the Sindhi nation.