By our correspondent
KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) staged a protest outside the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) building, raising alarm over the prolonged non-payment of pensions and dues owed to thousands of retired employees from the city’s town municipal administrations (TMAs).
The demonstration, led by the Pensioners’ Action Committee, echoed growing frustration and anger among pensioners and their families, who say they’ve been ignored for far too long by both the KMC administration and the Sindh government. The protest site bore witness to retired municipal workers and their supporters gathering in the sweltering heat, many holding placards demanding justice and relief.
Their collective message was clear: the silence from those in charge is no longer acceptable. For many, these unpaid pensions are not just numbers on a spreadsheet—they are survival lifelines that have been unjustly withheld. Ali Khurshidi, MQM-P leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly, addressed the media during the demonstration. He condemned the authorities for their persistent neglect and called the inaction of the Sindh government a “criminal silence.”
Khurshidi demanded the immediate release of all outstanding pension payments, saying the delay had pushed retired municipal workers into financial distress, with many unable to afford basic necessities. “It is unconscionable,” Khurshidi remarked, “that those who served the city for decades are now being abandoned in their twilight years. The state has a moral and constitutional responsibility to care for its pensioners.”
He pressed the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation and the Sindh government to not only clear the backlog of payments but also to institute a lasting mechanism that ensures pensioners are never subjected to such uncertainty again. The MQM-P, he said, would continue to raise its voice until the matter is resolved permanently and justly. The party also reiterated its demand for the formulation of a comprehensive and binding policy to protect the rights of municipal pensioners in Karachi.
