KARACHI: A delegation of Sindh intellectuals, human rights representatives, journalists, writers, social leaders, and academics called on Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and briefed him on the growing extremism in Sindh, according to a statement issued to the media here on Tuesday.

Expressing concern over the intolerance and incitement beingspread against writer and columnist Amar Jalil, the delegation drew his attention to the unnecessary reaction to the old allegorical fiction of the well-known writer. It also apprised the PPP chairman of the threats to Amar Jalil`s life and took up other issues being faced by progressive writers, poets and intellectuals in the province.

The delegation comprisedNoorul Huda Shah, Jami Chandio, Amar Sindhu, Dr Ayub Sheikh, DrArfanaMallah,RafiqChandio, Nazir Leghari, Fazil Jamili, Dr Jaffar Ahmed, Anees Haroon, Ahmed Shah, Zakia Ijaz and Imdad Chandio.

The delegation urged him that the cybercrime cell of the federal government be asked to contain and curb extremist statements on the social media. It said PPPshould play its positive role in this regard.

The PPP chairman told the delegation that extremist attitudes in the country, especially Sindh, would not be tolerated. He said the process of dialogue with representatives of different sects would be promoted.

Sindh is the land of Sufis and religious tolerance is its identity, hence it should be maintained in all circumstances, said Mr BhuttoZardari.

The meeting was also attended by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Minister for Culture Syed Sardar Shah, PPP vice president Senator Sherry Rehman,information secretary MNA Shazia Marri and political secretary to PPP chairman Jamil Soomro.

Our Staff Correspondent in Hyderabad adds: The Sindh Human Rights Defenders Network (SHRDN) has said the unwanted hype on the issue of symbolic story of mystic writer Amar Jalil is an attempt to control progressive and intellectual voice of Sindh.

The release of three-year-old video clip of the mystic writer was mala fide. Silence of the federal and provincial governments over the issue was shocking, it said in a meeting held at its office on Tuesday to discuss current status of human rights in Pakistan in general and Sindh in particular.

It said both governments had f ailed to protect peaceful citizens.The meeting resolved that human rights situation, including freedom of expression, was getting worse day by day and the case of Amar Jalil`s symbolic storytelling, manhandling of social media activist Sarmad Sultan and use of abusive language against women by a section of the print media were cases in point.

The meeting resolved that people felt democratic regimes must ensure protection of fundamental rights enshrined in the national and international laws and systems.

It noted that the statement by a certain pir and others announcing head money on Amar Jalil was tantamount to challenging the writ of state and Constitution.

It argued that since it was a matter concerning Sindh, the provincial government bore the prime responsibility to handle and settle it as per law.

It demanded that a case against the pir be registered, and urged the mainstream political parties to maintain a clear stand on the issue, which was created to reduce space for political freedom and social movements.

The meeting was chaired by SHRDN coordinator Advocate Ali Palh and attended by Zulfikar Halepoto, Zulfikar Kadri, Prof Mushtaq Mirani, Mahesh Kumar, Naseem Jalbani, Jabbar Bhatti, Mukhtiar Abbasi, Advocate Tanzila Mirza, Kashif Siddiqui, Anu Solangi and Syma Jafri.