Pakistan: Sindhudesh demand sparks violent clashes in Karachi

Pakistan is under boil as a massive protest erupted in Karachi with demonstrators having a demand - a separate Sindhudesh. The demand has led to violence in the country, leading to stone pelting, vandalism and an intense clash with police. It all started on Sunday (Dec 7) after protesters hit the streets on Sindhi Culture Day, demanding a separate Sindhudesh. A group of Sindhis, under the banner Jiye Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSSM), raised slogans of "Azadi" (freedom) and "Pakistan Murdabad". They demanded the liberation of Sindh, amplifying a longstanding sentiment of Sindhi nationalist parties.

The demand for an independent Azad Sindh has intensified, as Sindhi separatist groups call for separation from Pakistan and the formation of their own government for the Sindhi people. In response, police used force to disperse demonstrators and detained several activists.

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The tensions escalate after authorities diverted the rally route, angering thousands of protesters. The police resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse the crowd. As per reports, at least 45 people have been nabbed in the protest. Dawn reported that five police personnel were injured in the violence. The government directed the police to identify and arrest those involved in damaging property and vandalising police vehicles.

This came a week after a Pakistani news channel aired a discussion in which a journalist and an expert claimed that MQM (Muttahida Qaumi Movement) chief Altaf Hussain once told former Sindh home minister Zulfiqar Mirza that after the passage of the 18th Amendment, "the Sindhudesh card is now in our hands".

The region is an area near the Indus River. It went to Pakistan following the Partition in 1947. The name "Sindhudesh" was taken from the Hindu mythology Mahabharata, in which it is the name of modern Sindh, the third-largest Pakistani province.