March against 'landgrab, forced conversion of Hindu women'

The Jeay Sindh Mahaz organised an eight-kilometer-long march in Mirpurkhas on Saturday decrying corporate farming, plunder of Sindh's resources and alleged forced conversion of Hindu women. A large number of people from Hindu community also took part in the march which was led by the JSM's Chairman Riaz Ali Chandio and Nawaz Shah Badahi.

Chandio reiterated that the corporate farming cannot be accepted in any form even if the Pakistan Peoples Party's Sindh government dubbed the initiative as Public Private Partnership (PPP). The JSM's leader said instead of supporting the poor farmers the provincial government is only facilitating the large corporations and that too to the detriment of the peasants.

Chandio alleged that Sindh's coal, oil, water and other resources have already been sold. He rejected the proposal for constructing new dams on the pretext that Indus river's water is being released in large volume in the sea during the ongoing flood season.

He deplored that Sindh's major cities like Mirpurkhas still lacked public sector universities but the Sindh govt is planning to build a university in Punjab from the funds generated by selling the state's land to Bahria Town Karachi. Chandio reiterated that the country's law does not allow marriage of underage girls yet Hindu girls aged 14 to 15 years solemnize marriages and change their religions.

Chenab dam

The convener of Save Indus River Movement Syed Zain Shah, who is also head of Sindh United Party (SUP) has condemned the federal government's proposal to build Chenab dam in Punjab. He asserted in a statement on Saturday that the govt's plan is yet another move to rob Sindh of its due share of Indus water.

He blamed the PPP and PMLN for being hands in glove with the establishment in making such plans.