Rising concerns: Monitoring committee to put census issue before CM

Committee meeting held to discuss the delay in census and the Sindh government’s role

KARACHI: The issue of delays in the census will be highlighted before Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and Senate chairperson Mian Raza Rabbani to urge them to play their role on an issue that is important for Sindh and its people, decided the Census Monitoring Committee in a meeting on Wednesday.

The meeting, chaired by its convener Syed Jalal Mehmood Shah, was held at Haider Manzil. Sindhi nationalist parties, political and religious parties and writers expressed their concerns over the delay of census during the recently held meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI), which was chaired by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Addressing a press briefing after the meeting, Shah said that by delaying the census, the PM has actually supported Punjab that did not want the process of census to take place. “Unfortunately, the Sindh government has failed to present its case in the CCI meeting,” Shah claimed, adding that the CM only tried to justify his stance during the Sindh Assembly session.



Demanding the federal government to announce census immediately, Shah said that this was the fourth time since 2015 that census has been delayed. “We are not sure [if] the government will announce census dates at its next meeting,” he said.

The meeting also decided to continue their census awareness campaign from March 10 in various districts of the province. The committee, led by Rashdi, will meet the CM and the senate chairperson to discuss the reservations of Sindh.

Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam’s Rashid Mehmood Soomro said that the awareness campaign was conducted in ten districts before the CCI meeting and it will continue in the remaining areas. “It is an issue of life and death for Sindh,” he said, adding that people of the province want their due rights.

The meeting was also attended by Pakistan Muslim League — Functional’s MPA Mehtab Akbar Rashdi, Pakistan Muslim League — Nawaz’s MPA Haji Shafi Jamote, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz’s Dr Niaz Kalani, Jeay Sindh Mahaz’s chairperson Riaz Chandio, Sindh Writers and Thinkers Forum’s Noor Ahmed Memon and others.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 3^rd, 2016.