Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has warned that his party will not accept the results of a “fake census”. Rehman said this while speaking to the media in Karachi after meeting Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to discuss the city’s issues.The Sindh government is responsible for the betterment of Karachi but the city does not even have a transport system, Rehman lamented. “We have handed over a memorandum on Karachi’s issues to the chief minister,” the JI leader said. “We discussed taking up the matter of Karachi census results in the CCI [Council of Common Interests] meeting on November 10.”CM Shah assured the JI that the matter will be discussed, he said. The Haq Do Karachi Ko campaign is gaining momentum, according to Rehman. If Karachi was not served justice, the JI will get the city its due rights through public pressure. He criticised the PTI government in the Centre for its “criminal silence” on Karachi’s problems. “The federal government has no interest in Karachi,” the JI leader said. “The PTI only knows how to take from Karachi, it does not know how to give something back.”He demanded a fresh census in the megapolis followed by local body elections. The military should also clear its stance on the census, he said, adding that the rulers would not be allowed to hide behind the military. According to the 2017 census, there are approximately 16 million people in Karachi and about 47 million in Sindh. The results stirred controversy soon after they were released. Earlier this week, the MQM-Pakistan also demanded a fresh population survey in Karachi before the 2023 elections. The party believes Karachi’s population was underrepresented in the last census.
