Opposition hold govt responsible for heatwave deaths, calls for day of mourning
Khursheed Shah says PM should take responsibility for deaths in Karachi as toll surpasses 500
PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Opposition parties in the National Assembly called for a day of mourning on Friday as the death toll from the deadly heatwave surpassed 500 in Karachi and lower Sindh.
“We call for a black day to mourn the deaths of those owing to the heatwave,” Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah said, while speaking to the media outside Parliament.
Holding the incumbent Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government responsible for the deaths, Shah said, “The government has failed to fulfill its promises to provide electricity to the people during Ramazan.”
Read: Death toll from deadly heatwave surpasses 500
"The government is responsible for the deaths in Karachi due to the unavailability of electricity in the metropolis," he added.
Further, the opposition leader went on to say that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should take responsibility for the deaths in Karachi owing to the heatwave.
“The opposition has made the decision in unison to hold condolence meetings outside the National Press Club and mosques of the country,” Shah said. He also called for holding similar meetings outside other press clubs of the country.
Read: PM orders emergency measures as death toll exceeds 425
Further, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf vice chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that all opposition parties were on the same page when it came to the issue of load-shedding in the country.
"We will give a requisition for the summoning of National Assembly to discuss the increasing load-shedding in hot weather," Qureshi added.
More than 500 people have died from a three-day heatwave in Karachi, officials said on Tuesday, as medics battled to treat victims after a state of emergency was declared in hospitals.
Read: Energy management: PM Nawaz grills top bureaucrat over blackouts
The death toll in worst-hit Karachi, where temperatures hit 45 degrees Celsius at the weekend surpassed 500 while another eight to 10 people died in other parts of southern Sindh, said Sabir Memon, a senior provincial health official.
In Karachi, electricity shortages crippled the water supply system, hampering the pumping of millions of gallons of water to consumers, the state-run water utility said.
Opposition parties in the National Assembly called for a day of mourning on Friday as the death toll from the deadly heatwave surpassed 500 in Karachi and lower Sindh.
“We call for a black day to mourn the deaths of those owing to the heatwave,” Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah said, while speaking to the media outside Parliament.
Holding the incumbent Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government responsible for the deaths, Shah said, “The government has failed to fulfill its promises to provide electricity to the people during Ramazan.”
Read: Death toll from deadly heatwave surpasses 500
"The government is responsible for the deaths in Karachi due to the unavailability of electricity in the metropolis," he added.
Further, the opposition leader went on to say that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should take responsibility for the deaths in Karachi owing to the heatwave.
“The opposition has made the decision in unison to hold condolence meetings outside the National Press Club and mosques of the country,” Shah said. He also called for holding similar meetings outside other press clubs of the country.
Read: PM orders emergency measures as death toll exceeds 425
Further, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf vice chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that all opposition parties were on the same page when it came to the issue of load-shedding in the country.
"We will give a requisition for the summoning of National Assembly to discuss the increasing load-shedding in hot weather," Qureshi added.
More than 500 people have died from a three-day heatwave in Karachi, officials said on Tuesday, as medics battled to treat victims after a state of emergency was declared in hospitals.
Read: Energy management: PM Nawaz grills top bureaucrat over blackouts
The death toll in worst-hit Karachi, where temperatures hit 45 degrees Celsius at the weekend surpassed 500 while another eight to 10 people died in other parts of southern Sindh, said Sabir Memon, a senior provincial health official.
In Karachi, electricity shortages crippled the water supply system, hampering the pumping of millions of gallons of water to consumers, the state-run water utility said.