Pak: Protests in Sindh after MQM demands separate province

Karachi: Trouble broke out in parts of Pakistan’s Sindh province today after the MQM party demanded a separate province for the Urdu-speaking Muhajir population. Television channels reported that in some towns of interior Sindh including Nawabshah, Tando Allahyar and Badin protesters closed down shops and markets and resorted to aerial firing after the statement of Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain. The MQM chief launched a scathing attack on the ruling Pakistan Peoples’ Party in Sindh making it clear that if their (MQM) demands were not accepted then the Urdu-speaking Sindhis should be given a separate province. [caption id=“attachment_1322225” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  People fleeing from flooded areas shout anti-government slogans while they block the road during a protest against the delay in relief, in Sukkur. Reuters[/caption] Speaking to party workers in Hyderabad in the wake of upcoming local government polls, Hussain demanded equal rights for Urdu and Sindhi-speaking population of Sindh. He also threatened that the demand of a separate province can quickly turn into a demand of a separate country for Urdu speakers of Sindh. Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and commercial hub, is a stronghold of the Muhajir community which migrated from India during Partition. Sindhi nationalist leader, Ayaz Palijo, meanwhile told a press conference that if the MQM chief didn’t retract his remarks they would go on a indefinite strike in the province. The MQM has developed serious differences with the PPP over the delimitation process carried out for the local bodies elections due this month. The MQM chief warned that politics of force would not be tolerated neither would discrimination against the Urdu speaking Muhajirs. “The way this PPP government is proceeding they want to push half of this province’s population into the Arabian Sea,” he added. Hussain claimed that Urdu-speaking people would outnumber Sindhi speakers if fresh census is held under the United Nations today. PTI