Key coalition partner threatens to quit over disputed canal projects in Pakistan

Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, chairman of a major ruling coalition party in Pakistan, has warned that his party will quit the federal coalition government if the controversial canal projects over Indus River are not cancelled.

Speaking at a public rally in Hyderabad on Friday, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chief said the federal government’s plan to build new canals threatens the unity of the country.

“We made Shehbaz Sharif prime minister not once, but twice,” he said. “If the canal projects are not withdrawn, the PPP will not continue with this government.”

Bilawal’s comments reflect growing tension within Pakistan’s ruling coalition. His party shares power with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), but strongly opposes the construction of canals drawing water from the Indus River — a sensitive issue in Sindh province, the PPP’s political stronghold.

“The people of Sindh have rejected the canal project,” he said. “Those in Islamabad are blind and deaf. Two of the six canal approvals came from prisoner number 420,” he added, referring to a derogatory nickname for jailed former prime minister Imran Khan.

Bilawal accused the federal government of acting against the interests of farmers and warned that water mismanagement could destabilize the country.

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“The issue of water distribution can endanger the federation,” he said. “Every project by the 'lion party' is anti-farmer. They caused economic ruin through the wheat scandal. They suck the blood of the people and do nothing else.”

He added: “The government should not be under any illusion — I will not back down. I stand with the people.”

The PPP is under mounting pressure from its Sindhi voter base to either block the projects or withdraw from the coalition. The canal project has drawn widespread opposition in Sindh, with critics warning it could dry up fertile lands and worsen seawater intrusion in the Indus Delta.

The federal government claims the canals are necessary for national development. However, the Sindh Assembly has unanimously passed a resolution demanding their cancellation.

The controversy deepened after reports emerged that President Asif Ali Zardari — Bilawal’s father — had approved the canal plan during a meeting on July 8, 2024.

Zardari denied this in a speech to Parliament on March 10, 2025, and urged the federal government to consult provinces before making such decisions.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah also defended Zardari, saying on March 29 that the meeting minutes had wrongly attributed the approval to the president, calling it an administrative error.

The canal project has now become a political flashpoint, placing the PPP in a difficult position as it tries to balance federal responsibilities with regional loyalty.