‘Altaf’s remarks be taken up with the UK at diplomatic level’

PESHAWAR/KARACHI: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly on Monday passed a unanimous resolution asking the federal government to lodge a treason case against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) self-exiled chief Altaf Hussain under Article 6 of the Constitution.
The assembly also demanded of the federal government to take up the issue of Altaf Hussain’s statement with Britain at the diplomatic level.Two ministers, Inayatullah Khan of the Jamaat-e-Islami and Shah Farman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, jointly moved the resolution which was also supported by the opposition.
The resolution read: “The provincial assembly asks the central government to take notice of the MQM chief Altaf Hussain’s derogatory remarks against sensitive state institutions which not only insulted the nation but also incited his party activists to seek training for fighting and also sought help from the Indian secret agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
“The statement, if not taken into account, might endanger the national integrity and solidarity of the Federation of Pakistan. That’s why this assembly suggests to the federal government to analyse the statement and lodge a treason case against Altaf Hussain under Article 6 of the Constitution to ensure the integrity of the country.”
Meanwhile, the Sindh Assembly proceedings on Monday were marred by uproar, protests and boycott by the lawmakers of three opposition political parties who were not allowed to present their resolution to condemn the statement of Altaf Hussain against the army and integrity of Sindh.
The resolution was moved jointly by the lawmakers of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Pakistan Muslim League-Functional and PTI.The lawmakers of the three opposition parties pleaded several times with Speaker Agha Siraj Khan Durrani to take up their resolution since the outset of the sitting.
They were led by PML–F MPA Muhammad Shaharyar Khan, who had resigned as the leader of the opposition on April 29, and the parliamentary leaders of the other two parties. The speaker said as he had called for the commencement of the Question-Hour of the day’s sitting as per the regular agenda for the day, he could not allow moving any other item on an out-of-turn basis.
The speaker repeatedly advised the opposition lawmakers to first let him go through the regular agenda.As the opposition lawmakers were taking up the matter, only PML-F MPA Nusrat Seher Abbasi’s microphone was switched on as the first three queries in the Question-Hour were related to the health department and she was supposed to raise them.
The opposition lawmakers urged the Speaker to put aside the regular agenda for the time being to allow them to table the resolution keeping in view the urgency and sensitivity of the matter.
When the Speaker seemed unmoved by the passionate appeals of opposition lawmakers, Abbasi requested him to give a ruling that the opposition’s joint resolution would be taken up after the conclusion of the Question-Hour. However, the Speaker refused to make this commitment.The speaker said he would continue running the House as per the rules of procedures and the opposition lawmakers were unnecessarily protesting.
Later, the lawmakers of the three parties stormed out of the House and continued boycotting the proceedings till they ended.The draft of the resolution the three parties wanted to move reads: “We would like to condemn the remarks passed by Mr Altaf Hussain, the leader of the MQM, which are nothing but a call for instigation of violence and terror among the masses. Negative propaganda being created against our national institutions especially the Pakistan Army is strongly rejected. The demand for new province by dividing the province of Sindh coming from an individual who has been away from Pakistan since more than a decade and is a dual national is also rejected as nothing but a call for national disintegration. We request for strong legal action by the provincial as well as the federal government.”