KARACHI: The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) on Friday accused the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of “supporting and patronising” the business of illegal water supply in Karachi while “conniving with the tanker mafia” and moving the supply from the low-income and poor neighbourhoods to “posh and industrial areas”.

       The opposition party threatened that if the situation didn’t improve, it would expand the scope of its protest drive and raise voice at every legal forum against the PPP.

       The threat from the right-wing party came at a protest sit-in held outside the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation headquarters off Sharea Faisal.

       A larger number of party workers took part in the protest. The sit-in resulted in a traffic mess on the key artery.

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       Speaking on the occasion, Karachi JI chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman criticised the PPP government in Sindh over water crises in the mega city.

       He urged the provincial government to shun the policy of political revenge against Karachi and the Karachiites, and ensure water supply across the metropolis that, according to him, housed 35 million people.

       He demanded that the government complete the K-IV and S-III projects instead of misleading Karachiites with fake promises.

       “The PPP has ruined the mega city in the past 15 years as it has been enjoying totalitarianism, but it hasn’t added a drop of water in the quota for Karachi,” he said.

       He said that the K-IV — originally the 650 million gallon per day water supply project — had been reduced to its 40 per cent capacity and the formalities were yet to be completed. The only development, he said, on the project was mere statements by the PPP leaders.

       The JI leader also demanded that the provincial government dismantle illegal hydrants operating across the city.

       He said after almost two months the entire system had been halted on the pretext of being in the transition period.

       Published in Dawn, Aug 5th, 2023