Opposition legislators belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) created a ruckus in the Sindh Assembly on Monday over the worsening water shortage in Karachi. The protest resulted in chaotic scenes, loud sloganeering, and uproar that virtually paralysed proceedings of the provincial legislature.
The assembly session, presided over by Deputy Speaker Naveed Anthony, descended into turmoil shortly after it began as the MQM members rose from their seats and chanted slogans demanding water for Karachi’s residents. The uproar became so intense that the legislators were unable to hear one another amid the commotion.
Despite repeated requests from the chair to allow the question hour to proceed before discussing the issue, Muttahida lawmakers insisted that the city’s acute water shortage was an urgent public matter that deserved immediate attention. The disturbance severely disrupted the question hour relating to the fisheries and livestock department with replies from ministers becoming inaudible in the din.
Leader of the Opposition Ali Khurshidi warned that suppressing the opposition’s voice inside the assembly would render parliamentary debate meaningless. He criticised the government for failing to address Karachi’s worsening water crisis, saying residents visiting MQM offices were complaining daily about the non-availability of water in several neighbourhoods.
He particularly highlighted the deteriorating situation in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Orangi Town, claiming that citizens had been suffering for days. “The people of Karachi are thirsty, and the entire city presents the scene of Karbala,” he declared during his speech, which further intensified tensions in the House.
In response, Sindh Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar urged the opposition not to politicise the issue of water scarcity. He maintained that the provincial government was taking concrete measures to improve water supply across the metropolis and pointed to the ongoing K-IV water supply project as a long-term solution to Karachi’s growing needs.
The law minister reminded the MQM legislators that their party was also part of the federal government and should press Islamabad for the swift completion of the K-IV project. He stated that the government had launched an additional scheme linked to the Hub Canal to improve water supply in Orangi Town and other affected areas.
Lanjar also acknowledged that water theft remained one of Karachi’s major civic challenges and stressed that meeting the city’s rapidly increasing water demand would be impossible without the completion of the K-IV project.
During the session, Opposition lawmakers submitted call attention notices regarding water shortages, sewerage issues and deteriorating infrastructure in different constituencies of Karachi.
Jamaat-e-Islami MPA Muhammad Farooq highlighted severe sewerage issues in his constituency stating that a 36-inch sewerage line had turned entire residential areas into stagnant pools of water. He warned that the situation could worsen further on Eidul-Azha adding that even the fronts of mosques remained submerged under two feet of stagnant water.
Sindh Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah acknowledged the seriousness of the issue and assured the House that work on the project was under way and nearing completion.
MQM lawmaker Naseer Ahmed complained about the deplorable condition of roads in Manghopir, claiming that the area appeared to have been ignored in the government’s development priorities.
In response, the local government minister promised comprehensive road construction and development across the constituency. Another MQM legislator Shariq Jamal raised concerns regarding persistent water and sewerage problems in his constituency, alleging that electricity load-shedding at the Dhabeji and other pumping stations had severely affected water supply. He claimed that despite the installation of an express water line costing Rs90 million, residents were still not receiving water.
Shah informed the assembly that several development schemes were currently under way in the Korangi and Shah Faisal Colony areas stating that multiple civic projects had already been completed, while others would soon be finalised.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) legislator Sajjad Soomro also raised drainage-related concerns in Lyari. The local government minister responded to him by announcing that the provincial government was implementing development schemes worth billions of rupees in Lyari as part of a wider urban uplift package.
PTI lawmaker Shabbir Qureshi criticised the provincial government for what he described as its lack of seriousness regarding Karachi’s water crisis. He argued that the city’s water demand far exceeded supply and alleged that even discussions on the issue were discouraged inside the house.
He accused the authorities of carrying out substandard work on the Hub Canal project. Meanwhile, the House unanimously passed a resolution moved by MQM lawmaker Aamir Siddiqui to condemn the torching of houses in a Jacobabad village because of an alleged act of vengeance following a marriage-related dispute. The resolution demanded action against the police officials allegedly responsible for the incident.
Lanjar supported the resolution terming it an important public issue, and assured the lawmakers that the affected families would receive assistance following an official inquiry. In another significant development, the House unanimously passed the bill establishing the Sindh Institute of Reproductive Health in Karachi. The report of the relevant standing committee on the bill was presented earlier by Nida Khuhro before the legislation was approved by the House. The session was later prorogued.
