KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly on Wednesday witnessed noisy protests and a dramatic walkout by opposition parties during the budget session, as lawmakers from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) jointly rejected the provincial budget, terming it 'anti-people' and 'mere wordplay'.
Opposition Leaders Announce Continued Protests
The opposition leaders later announced at a joint press conference that they would continue protests during the budget debate, alleging that urban Sindh had been systematically ignored in fiscal planning.
Budget Session Turns Tense
Earlier, the budget session turned tense soon after Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah began presenting his budget speech. Following recitation of the Holy Quran and Fateha, the chief minister had just begun his initial remarks when opposition members stood up from their seats, chanting slogans and holding placards inscribed with anti-government slogans, including 'budget rejected' and 'end state repression'. The uproar forced the chief minister to briefly pause his speech, after which opposition members staged a walkout from the House. Despite the disruption, Murad Ali Shah resumed and completed his budget presentation, while the Assembly proceedings continued and later concluded.
Accusations of Authoritarian and Elite-Driven Budget
Speaking at the Assembly media corner after the boycott, Opposition Leader Ali Khursheedi, along with PTI parliamentary leader Shabbir Qureshi and JI parliamentary leader Muhammad Farooq, accused the provincial government of presenting an 'authoritarian' and 'elite-driven' budget without consulting the opposition. Khursheedi alleged that urban Sindh had been deliberately sidelined in development priorities, adding that no pre-budget consultation meetings were held in accordance with parliamentary norms. "We have rejected this budget," he said, warning of continued protest action.
MQM-P parliamentary leader Iftikhar Alam said the budget reflected an 'authoritarian mindset' and claimed that sectors such as education and health in urban Sindh had been neglected. He further alleged that Karachi had been ignored in development allocations, calling the budget 'non-people friendly'. JI parliamentary leader Muhammad Farooq said Karachi contributes the bulk of national revenue but continues to be deprived of its due share. Terming the budget 'elite-centric and corruption-driven', he said both provincial and federal authorities had failed to address the city's concerns.
PTI parliamentary leader Shabbir Qureshi called the financial plan a 'Karachi and Hyderabad-hostile budget' and demanded investigations into alleged corruption, referring to claims made by a provincial minister regarding irregularities within government departments. The opposition leaders said all three parties would continue coordinated protests both inside and outside the Assembly during the budget debate.
