Altaf seeks legislation to oust Rangers from Sindh

Karachi
Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain on Tuesday urged the Sindh chief minister, Qaim Ali Shah, and the Sindh Assembly to pass legislation stating that the province did not require the “oppressive” presence of Rangers anymore.
Talking to party office bearers at Nine Zero, the MQM chief said the party will hold a sit-in in front of the CM House against the oppressive actions, arbitrary arrests, torture and extra-judicial killings by the Rangers.
“If they open fire on the participants of the sit-in, the Rangers personnel and ‘their captain’ will be responsible for the consequences,” he said.
“They [Rangers] have issued a statement declaring that they would arrest MQM’s unit incharges and sector incharges for receiving militancy training by the Tanzeemi Committee. The committee hasn’t been functional for quite some time.”
Hussain said neither the chief minister nor the judiciary took any notice of this statement by the Rangers. He said had the courts been really free, they would have taken notice and sought an explanation about the “illegal” declaration by the paramilitary force.
“The courts would have warned the Rangers of due action if they violated the law and constitution,” he said.
Hussain also called on the civil and human rights organisations about what he termed were serious violations in Sindh, and especially Karachi. “They should raise their voice against the injustices committed against Mohajirs, Sindhis, Balochis and Pakhtuns.”
He condemned the granting of additional powers to the Federal Investigation Agency and warned Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that those very powers might be used against him in the future.
“We had opposed setting up of special courts in the past by Nawaz Sharif. We had told him that these courts would be used against him but he did not listen. It was one of the special courts which later sentenced him,” said the MQM chief. “We don’t need motorways and big development projects. We want Kashmir to be liberated. Rangers should be sent for liberating Kashmir.”
He said several army operations had been conducted in Balochistan on the pretext of calling the natives Indian agents. Army action has also been done in Sindh and its capital Karachi and thousands of people have been killed. But nothing is ever done in Punjab.”
He referred to an incident in 1977 which occurred in Lahore during the Nizam-e-Mustafa.
“The army opened fire on protesters in Karachi, Balochistan and the NWFP but the officers refused to open fire on protesters in front of the Punjab Assembly in Lahore, saying they could not open fire on their brothers.”