A wedding celebration converted into protest against six new canals and corporate farming
A wedding celebration converted into protest against six new canals and corporate farming
Sindhyani Tahreek and Awami Tahreek Lead Protest Against SIFC, Corporate Farming, and Canal Projects at Wedding Ceremony
K.N. Shah/Dadu, in a striking display of resistance, activists from the Sindhyani Tahreek and Awami Tahreek transformed a wedding ceremony in K.N. Shah into a platform for protest against the construction of six new canals, corporate farming, and other anti-people policies imposed by the Sindh government and federal authorities. The event, attended by hundreds, saw women singing traditional Sindhi songs with altered lyrics condemning the exploitation of the Indus River, while leaders delivered fiery speeches against systemic injustices.
The protest occurred during a wedding reception (Valima) of Atif Mallah, a prominent leader of the Awami Tahreek, Sindhi Shagird Tahreek held at a local marriage hall. Women of the Sindhyani Tahreek, with their hands dyed in henna, raised slogans such as No More canals on Indus. Their symbolic resistance highlighted the growing public anger against the Sindh government’s collusion with federal entities to deprive Sindh of its rightful share of Indus River water.
The groom Atif Mallah stated that “The Bilawal-Shahbaz alliance government has pushed Sindh into a state of war by blocking our water. Corporate farming is an imperialist assault on Sindh’s sovereignty. We reject this modern-day colonization!”
He further added that The SIFC (Special Investment Facilitation Council) is an anti-democratic entity. It must be abolished to restore the democracy. The Sindhi nation will protest each and every moment, to protect the Indus River. Our peaceful, democratic struggle will reclaim its waters. Our demon is simple we want Sindh’s due share water according to 1945 Sindh Punjab water Accord.
The Sindhyani Tahreek has pioneered new methods of dissent, merging cultural expression with political resistance. At the wedding, women sang No More Canals on Indus with modified verses criticizing canal projects, This marks a new phase in the movement’s strategy, where even celebratory gatherings are becoming sites of resistance.
The Awami Tahreek and Sindhyani Tahreek have launched daily protests across Sindh, demanding the reversal of anti-farmer policies, cancellation of corporate farming, and the termination of canal projects threatening the Indus Delta. Leaders vow to escalate their campaign, including plans for mass sit-ins and riverbank assemblies.
