KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) has announced to support ongoing sit-in of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) against the controversial Sindh local government (LG) law.

MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said that the political party had invited Jamaat-e-Islami to the conference to devise a joint strategy against Sindh LG law; however, JI did not attend it. Siddiqui said that JI is holding sit-in for many days and MQM-P is going to support it. The MQM-P convener made the announcement while addressing a conference in Karachi against the controversial Sindh LG law.

He announced that his political party will hold its power show against the ‘black law’ as the Sindh LG law is an open violation of the Constitution’s Article A-140. Siddiqui said that it is now impossible to impose the black law through a fake majority in the Sindh Assembly.

He said that MQM had approved the first mass transit project of South Asia in Karachi with the assistance of the World Bank in 1987. He added it is unfortunate that the Metro project was completed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab but not in Karachi.

Siddiqui said that MQM had been founded against the quota system. The new LG law will benefit 11 representatives of the Sindh Public Service Commission, he added. The MQM-P convener demanded the stakeholders to constitute a committee to formulate a joint strategy against the controversial Sindh LG law that have completed deprived the mayor of the metropolis of powers under new amendments.

On January 11, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman had announced that the sit-in and talks will be continued side-by-side until their demands have met by the Sindh government against the controversial local government (LG) law.

While addressing the participants of the ongoing JI sit-in outside the Sindh Assembly building, he had said that JI will end its sit-in if the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) takes effective steps to address the political party’s reservations on the Sindh LG law.

Earlier on January 10, a delegation of the ruling PPP had met Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leaders to hold talks to end the ongoing sit-in against Sindh Local Government (LG) law. Both sides had announced the formation of committees for holding talks. The government side will be represented by Nasir Hussain Shah, Saeed Ghani, Murtaza Wahab, Taj Haider and Waqar Mehdi.

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) had also challenged the Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Bill 2021 in the Sindh High Court (SHC). The petition was moved by JI Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman.