KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chapter staged a protest demo outside the Sindh Chief Minister’s House on Sunday, as a large number of its workers and supporters converged despite police barriers placed on several routes.
The rally, part of the “Karachi Rights March,” was briefly stopped at Shahrae Faisal near the FTC area, where police contingents attempted to block participants. Jamaat-e-Islami Sindh Assembly member Muhammad Farooq vowed the march would not be stopped. The party also accused police of pushing its workers and attempting violence against what it described as a peaceful demonstration.
Addressing the gathering, JI Karachi Chief, Monem Zafar Khan congratulated the people for reaching the Chief Minister’s House in thousands, saying the turnout proved that Karachi was “awake and aware.” He held Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) responsible for decades of misrule, alleging that the two parties had traded interests for 40 years while ignoring the people’s needs.
He sharply criticized Mayor Murtaza Wahab, alleging that the Sindh government had failed to provide basic services such as water, electricity, healthcare, education, transport, and roads. He reminded that PPP had once promised to transfer powers to local bodies after the NFC Award and the 18th Amendment but failed to fulfil these promises.
He said this sit-in has just begun. “We have not come here to leave — we have come to secure the rights of Karachi through struggle and resistance, and we will force the rulers to bow down.”
JI Keamari District Chief, Maulana Fazal Ahad accused PPP of crossing all limits of hostility towards Karachi. Recent rains have exposed the PPP government’s corruption and mismanagement. The struggle of Jamaat-e-Islami will continue, he said, adding that the “Give Rights to Karachi” movement had now expanded into a nationwide campaign.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025