MQM-P begins street movement for Karachi rights, seeks constitutional reforms

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Sunday launched the first protest demonstration of its announced street movement for Karachi's rights in Shah Faisal Town, with party leaders criticising the Sindh government over civic issues and demanding greater constitutional powers and administrative authority for the city.

Senior MQM-P leaders, including members of the National Assembly and Sindh Assembly, attended the gathering, where senior leader and former Karachi mayor Syed Mustafa Kamal was welcomed by party workers.

Addressing the rally, Kamal alleged that Karachi had been deprived of its due rights for years and accused the Sindh government of failing to address the city's worsening civic conditions.

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"People in Sindh are facing genocide. This has been happening for 18 years," he claimed, adding that the time had come to decide whether the existing system, under which "our generations are being deprived of their rights", should continue.

He said MQM-P was not speaking against Pakistan but was demanding constitutional rights for Karachi and its residents.

"We want our rights according to the Constitution of Pakistan. We want rights for our children," he said.

Kamal argued that Karachi's problems stemmed from governance rather than a lack of resources, claiming that the Sindh government had received Rs22,000 billion but had failed to spend the funds on the city. He also claimed that during his tenure as mayor, Karachi had ranked among the world's 12 developed cities after development spending of Rs300bn.

Alleging that the federal government was not withholding funds for Karachi, he accused the Sindh government of failing to utilise the city's allocated resources.

"We need a change in this system," he said, while adding that MQM-P's struggle would remain peaceful and aimed at securing constitutional rights.

The former mayor criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), alleging that it had blocked local government-related constitutional amendments. He also called for a new constitutional amendment providing a mechanism for creating new administrative units.

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"A city that provides 70 per cent of the country's revenue should at least be provided with resources. If you can bring the 27th Amendment, then we also want the 28th Amendment," he said.

Kamal described the current demonstrations as only the beginning of the party's movement.

"This is only our net practice; the actual match has not started yet," he said.

Addressing concerns over administrative reforms, he said MQM-P was not seeking to divide Sindh.

"We are not talking about breaking Sindh; we are talking about saving Sindh," he said, likening the creation of new administrative units to adding rooms or floors to a house without dividing it.

He announced that the party would continue holding protest gatherings over the next 30 days before issuing a final call for a larger movement.

"In that final call, we will sit on the highways until our rights are given," he said.

Provincial lawmaker Shariq Jamal also addressed the gathering, accusing the PPP of failing to resolve Karachi's civic problems and urging residents to continue peaceful protests.

"There is no electricity, no healthcare and no education. Until people come out of their homes, these issues will not be resolved," he said.

Senior MQM-P leader Anees Qaimkhani said the protest campaign would continue and warned that the party's movement would intensify in the coming weeks.