New York:
The leader of the Jeay Sindh Freedom Movement (JSFM), Zafar Sahito, paid rich tribute to Bashir Khan Qureshi on his 9th death anniversary on 7 April.
In a detailed statement, Zafar Sahito highlighted some aspects of the life and struggle of Bashir Khan Qureshi, regarded as one of the most prominent Sindhi nationalist leaders. Bashir khan Qureshi, he told, was a prominent Sindhi nationalist who served as the leader of Jeay Sindh Qoumi Mahaz (JSQM ). Bashir Khan Qureshi was assassinated by the state authorities who poisoned him in mysterious circumstances at the age of 54 years on 7 April 2012. No FIR of his death was registered.
Bashir Khan Qureshi was assassinated two weeks after organizing “freedom March for Sindhudesh” in Karachi Sindh on March 23, 2012, when hundreds of thousands of Sindhi people gathered & demanded freedom of Sindhudesh. In his speech, Bashir Qureshi appealed to world leaders for help and support for the freedom of Sindhudesh. Pakistani intelligence agencies started threatening him following the freedom March & soon he died mysteriously which clearly indicates that the Pakistani establishment was involved in his death. After his sudden demise, JSQM workers & the Sindhi nation held many protests all over the occupied Sindh and demanded the international court of justice and the United Nations for an independent investigation into the murder of their leader but no concrete results came out to this date.
In his message to the Sindhi people, Zafar Sahito Said, “We don’t believe that cardiac arrest was the cause of Bashir Khan Qureshi’s death. We are certain that he was eliminated by those who could not stand the nationalist leader’s popularity, which was amply demonstrated during a rally in Karachi on March 23, 2012,”. According to Sahito, Bashir khan Qureshi was on a party tour when he suddenly lost consciousness after having dinner with other party workers. He complained of chest pain followed by a cough. Qureshi was shifted to a local hospital, where he breathed his last at around 2:45 am. Party workers contended that Qureshi was not a heart patient, and there had never been any indication of heart problems in the past. Some leaders of his party alleged that he was poisoned at the time of the dinner.
Subsequently, the medical team at Chandka Medical College performed an autopsy of Bashir’s body, but the results of the report have been kept confidential. Meanwhile, although the 15-member committee of forensic experts constituted by the Sindh government to further investigate the cause of Qureshi’s death have acknowledged that there was a presence of organophosphate in Qureshi’s viscera, they contend it does not conclusively prove there was foul play.
While shedding light on the political career of Qureshi, Sahito said, Qureshi started his political career as a student worker of the Jeay Sindh Students Federation during his studies at the Agriculture University, Tando Jam. Since the early stages of his political activism, he was very close to Sain G.M Syed, Qureshi became chairman of the JSQM in 1998 and continued the struggle for Sindh’s independence until his mysterious death.
Under Qureshi’s leadership, the JSQM consistently mobilized the masses in Sindh to demand the rights of the Sindhi nation. The construction of the Kalabagh Dam, illegal immigration to Sindh, and other issues related to language, the national census, and the recognition of Sindhis’ rights to the province’s natural resources remained the party’s continuing agenda.
He got his party involved with peoples’ day-to-day issues. He was actively engaged in the process of restoring peace in upper Sindh by helping convince tribal chiefs to wage peace not war, and to allow people to live in harmony. Moreover, Bashir Khan Qureshi and his workers often challenged state agencies and feudal lords, dared to organize demonstrations, and participate in the rallies and strikes carried out by laborers, students, and civil society demanding peoples’ rights, said Zafar Sahito.
“Bashir Khan Qureshi was the first Sindhi nationalist leader who effectively propelled the Sindhis of the interior Sindh to assert their rights in Sindh’s urban areas,” Zafar Sahito. He further said that the ‘Freedom March’ held on Pakistan Day in Karachi in 2012 was evidence of his leadership skills when hundreds of thousands of leaders, activists, and supporters of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz & common Sindhi people gathered in Karachi streets, chanting anti-Pakistan slogans like ‘Kal bana tha Bangladesh, ab Banega Sindhu Desh,’ After the creation of Bangladesh, it was the biggest anti-Pakistan rally ever witnessed in country’s history. In that protest rally, Bashir khan Qureshi said loudly, “ Today we all say goodbye to the Pakistan Resolution and demand freedom for Sindh, Sindh Wants Freedom “.
The Jeay Sindh Freedom Movement founder & Chief organizer, Zafar Sahito said “ we will carry Bashir khan Qureshi’s mission and continue his struggle until the freedom of Sindhudesh”. He also demanded justice and international intervention in Sindh.
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