Sharjeel sees foreign involvement in Moro violence

Sindh Senior Minister for Information and Transport Sharjeel Inam Memon on Monday said that proxies have been activated in recent days as part of conspiracies against Pakistan.

Addressing a media briefing in Karachi, he said police personnel were subjected to violence in a recent protest, in which some individuals were seen carrying explosive materials on their backs. Using these incendiary substances, they set an oil tanker on fire and also torched the residence of Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar, he explained, adding that the material was so inflammable that even the walls of the house caught fire.

He said there were videos showing individuals calling for reaching Lanjar’s House. Among them were people who were speaking neither Sindhi nor Saraiki, but another language, Memon said, adding that the protesters were armed with modern weapons, giving the impression that they were not locals, but foreigners.

The information minister showed the media footage of the interior minister’s house being set on fire, and stated that such a blaze could not have occurred without the use of flammable chemicals.

He added that when the protesters opened fire, two participants in the procession were injured. Chaos erupted at the hospital and police personnel were also subjected to violence, he said.

Memon said police requested the protesters to hand over the bodies of the deceased to their families, but the protesters refused and instead spread false claims on social media, alleging that police had taken the bodies.

Despite repeated appeals from the police to collect the bodies, they continued to refuse, the information minister claimed. Even leaders of nationalist parties urged them to proceed with the burials, but they did not comply, he added.

The information minister said the violent elements also approached nationalist leader Dr Niaz Kalani to gain his support, but Dr Kalani refused to side with them because of their violent ways.

Memon said a false narrative was being spread on social media, claiming that the government was refusing to hand over the bodies. When a delegation of lawyers visited the protesters, they were told that the bodies would not be buried, even if it took a month, until their demands were met.

The protesters began blackmailing the government, insisting that they would not proceed with the burials unless the IG and DIG were removed and their other demands were accepted. A delegation of religious scholars also attempted to intervene, but the protesters still refused to bury the bodies, Memon maintained.

Later, the same protesters approached the court, falsely alleging that the police had hidden the bodies. After completing all legal procedures, the court ruled that if the legal heirs refused to claim the bodies, the Naushahro Feroze SSP was authorised to arrange the burials through a social welfare organisation.

He said that following the court orders, the body was kept for 10 to 12 hours. After the post-mortem, the medico-legal officer recommended that the body be buried without delay, upon which the burial was carried out through social arrangements.

The entire incident received significant attention in India, where the media prominently reported that the Sindh home minister’s house had been set on fire, Memon said. He remarked that the Pakistan Peoples Party was a political party that respected all other political parties, despite past differences. However, he said, the group involved in such violent actions was not a political party and it was misleading the youth, arming them, and using them for its own agenda.

Commenting on a call for protest by Shafi Burfat, the leader of a banned organization, the information minister said if Burfat was sincere with his people, he should return to Pakistan. The government would not tolerate any attempts to mislead the country’s youth or to incite chaos and violence, he said urging the young people to remain cautious of such elements that wanted to lead them astray.

In response to a question, Memon said one leader of the protesters even claimed that the government had burned the house of its own minister. He asked why then there was an outcry over arrests because if the claim was true, the people being arrested must also be the government’s own.

He added that violating someone’s Chadar aur Chaar Deewari (privacy and sanctity of the home) was not part of Sindh’s traditions. He said the purpose of the Moro violence was to attract international attention. He emphasised that the people of Sindh were inherently peaceful and followers of Shah Bhittai and Sachal Sarmast.

In response to another question, he said that one leader of the protesters was residing in European countries and misusing his influence to manipulate the minds of innocent youth. He emphasised that problems were solved through dialogue, not violent actions.

He said Dr Qadir Magsi was an experienced politician who had likely called a protest due to social media reports claiming the police were withholding the bodies. He urged Dr Magsi to reconsider his protest call and withdraw it.