Sindh revokes permission to develop islands

KARACHI: The Sindh government has written a fresh letter to the federal government following the Sindh cabinet’s decision of no longer engaging with the federal government for developing the islands.

The letter by the secretary Sindh Land Utilization Department to the secretary of Cabinet Division cited Article 172(2) of the Constitution and emphasized the Sindh government’s exclusive ownership over all islands along the coast of the province. It said the government of Sindh had earlier agreed to the development of island subject to the following conditions:

a-Islands shall be dealt with as per law.

b-On such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon.

c-The development or construction activity on the island shall be protected and promote the legitimate interests of local fishermen.

But the federal government, instead of fulfilling them unilaterally, issued the Pakistan Islands Development Authority Ordinance-2020, which illegally usurps the ownership of Bundal and Buddo Islands in clear blatant violation of Article 172(2) of the Constitution. Moreover, the illegal annexation of the islands tantamount to changing the boundaries of our province, which is again a violation of Article 239(4) of the Constitution.

The letter informed the central government of Sindh cabinet’s decision of no more engaging with the federal government for developing the islands and asked the cabinet secretary to consider its earlier letter as null and void.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan People’s Party has termed the promulgation of the ordinance by the federal government as an attempt to usurp the land of Sindh. The Executive Committee of the PPP Sindh Chapter, which met under President Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, adopted a resolution to demand withdrawal of the ordinance, terming it transgression of its authority. The meeting unanimously said that the two islands were the property of the Sindh government as per the Article-172 of the Constitution. It said being the guarantor of the rights of the provinces, the PPP would by no means allow the federal government to trample upon the rights of the provinces.

Another resolution urged the federal government to end prolonged loadshedding of electricity and gas supply in Sindh. It said that the natural gas produced in the province should be utilized for fulfilling energy needs of domestic and industrial consumers of the province. Another resolution urged the federal government to announce an emergency financial assistance package for around 2.5 million people affected by the heavy monsoon rains in Sindh.

It also demanded resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan for his failure to provide any relief to the masses. The meeting decided to hold a public meeting at Bagh-e-Jinnah adjacent to the Mausoleum of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah on 18th October, 2002 to pay homage to the PPP workers killed in Karsaz bomb blast of 2007.