Karachi: On February 23, 2025, JSQM-Arisar—a Sindhi nationalist political party—led a march from Baloch bridge to Karachi Press Club in Karachi, drawing an impressive crowd.

On January 28 of this year, JSQM-Arisar announced a foot march from Sukkur—a city in Sindh province—that would culminate in Karachi, the provincial capital, on Sunday, February 23.

The primary aim of the march was to protest the construction of canals on the Indus River and the implementation of cooperative farming, measures many in Sindh believe will transform the region’s fertile land into barren wasteland.

“Canals means a death warrant for Sindhis and Sindh,” said one of participants. The demonstration also highlighted other pressing issues, including religious extremism, enforced disappearances, and the presence of military forces in the educational institutes, forced conversion, and the rapid proliferation of madrassahs in the province.

This march also joined by female political activists—one of them Kiran Nizamani—who walked on foot from Sukkur to Karachi alongside JSQM chairman Aslam Kherpuri, General Sectary Fatah Chano, Jiye Sindh Students Federation (JSSF) president Asad Sindhiyar. In Karachi, numerous prominent political activists, social activists, lawyers, and Sindhi nationalist leader Dr. Niaz Kalani joined the march. Not only did adults participate, but also children took part, chanting slogans against the construction of canals.

Despite Foot Injuries, Protesters continued the March

Asad Sindhiyar, president of JSSF, smiled and said, “I did not expect so many people to join. But our march has united people around issue of our very existence. It is essential that we remain united on this common issue, regardless of which political party we belong to.”

Many participants who traveled from Sukkur suffered foot injuries—including Aslam Kherpuri. Despite their injuries, they continued marching. A young boy, while walking, remarked that such injuries could be minimized if we protected our Sindhu Darya (Indus River).

Dr. Sorath Sindhu, an activist, shared her views, noting that these people joined the march not out of greed for jobs or power, but solely to protect the Indus River. The government, which should have supported them, instead tried to create obstacles to this peaceful march. “If we remain silent on the canals, our very existence will vanish. The state is committing genocide against Sindhis,” Dr. Sindhu said.

When the name of Punjab was mentioned in the chants (Ae Punjab Toun Saan Jhehro Aa, meaning, O, Punjab, a fight over canals) the children raised their voices even further in anger. One child, when asked by this journalist if he knew why Punjab was being referenced, confidently replied, “You do not know that Punjab is constructing canals on Sindhu Darya (Indus River), which will stop our water. For that reason, I am here to oppose it.”

Other Political Parties Announced Protests on the Same Day

The majority of protesters were unhappy that other political parties did not join the march in Karachi; instead, those parties organized separate political public gatherings in various cities across the Sindh province on February 23—a move protesters felt was designed to weaken the march. They believed that had these parties participated in the Karachi march, it would have evolved into a major Jalsa capable of pressuring the rulers in Islamabad, rather than merely staging a party show at the expense of Sindh’s issues.

Official Authorities Tried to Disrupt the March

The police demanded that the march divert from its planned route. However, the organizers emphasized that their peaceful march was intended to proceed to the Press Club. One lawyer noted that in the past, other protesters had been allowed to use this route, but the police refused to change their demand.

Shortly thereafter, rangers arrived, carrying weapons, which escalated the situation into tension. During this period, organizers repeatedly announced over microphone that some people in plainclothes operatives from certain agencies had arrived to attack the police and their vehicles—people who were not part of their group.

Despite warnings, a minor conflict erupted between some protesters carrying flags and the police, leading organizers to intervene by snatching the flags and fending off those attacking vehicles. Amid this tense atmosphere, one protester claimed that the march organizers eventually agreed to change the route avoid a clash, which he believed had been orchestrated by the authorities.

Since Pakistan’s Creation, Punjab’s land Has Flourished While Sindh’s Has Withered

Aslam Kherpuri, leader of JSQM-Arisar, delivered a speech at the Karachi Press Club, detailing a record of injustice committed by the province of Punjab. He stated that since 1859, Punjab has been stealing Sindh’s share of water. Despite the 1945 agreement that Punjab would never initiate any projects without Sindh’s permission, the province has constructed fifty canal, eighty dams, and nineteen barrages—clearly demonstrating that water is being stolen.

He further claimed that the Sindhis never accepted the 1992 water accord because it was imposed on us, resulting in significant damage to the Sindh province: one crore and eighty lakh acres of land have become infertile, and nearly 92% of the Indus Delta has been damaged, along with severe losses to marine life.

He added that in 1960, Sindh boasted on crore and fifty lakh acres of fertile land, of which only 72 lakh acres remain today. In contrast, Punjab, which has one crore and seventy-six lakh acres of fertile land in 1960, now benefits from an increase of three crore and seventy-five lack acres—further evidence that Punjab is stealing our water. Now, they aim to transform their barren land into fertile ground by turning Sindh’s fertile land into wasteland.

Kherpuri also criticized the state’s plan to construct six canals—a project that he claimed will benefit the military, Arabs, and even the ruling party in Sindh, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). He expressed concern over the cooperative green initiative, in which 92 lakh acres of land are slated to be handed over to Middle Eastern countries, with the majority coming from Sindh.

Furthermore, he highlighted other issues such as religious extremism by citing the case of Dr. Shahnawaz Kanbhar, who was killed on charges of blasphemy. Kherpuri alleged that PPP members colluded with the police to carry out a fake encounter that resulted in Kanbhar’s death, and that no action has been taken against those responsible. He also mentioned that Hindu girls are victims of forced conversion, leaving them unsafe, and noted that madrassahs are proliferating in Sindh. Overall, he condemned various state projects that have not benefited the people but have instead stripped Sindhis of their right to a dignified life. He called for Sindhis to unite against these anti-Sindh policies and demanded the restoration of the students’ union, which has been banned since 1984.

FIR against Protesters

The First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged against Kiran Nizamani, Aslam Kherpuri, Fatah Chano, Dr. Niaz Kalani, Asad Sindhiyar, and other protesters. In response, Asad stated that he would not condemn what he described as a ‘fake FIR’; instead, he and his party members would face it. “The government did not heed our demands; instead, it lodged an FIR against us. Our party will continue to raise its voice against the six canals and cooperative farming projects,” he said.