KARACHI: Lashing out at authorities for allegedly running a media trial of the Muttahida Qamumi Movement (MQM), Altaf Hussain early on Saturday said that dreams of those who want to finish the party would never come true.
Speaking to workers at MQM headquarters Nine-Zero via telephone from London, he said the process for ‘dismantling’ his party had begun from March 11.
ByTICKER
March 28, 2015
KARACHI: Lashing out at authorities for allegedly running a media trial of the Muttahida Qamumi Movement (MQM), Altaf Hussain early on Saturday said that dreams of those who want to finish the party would never come true.
Speaking to workers at MQM headquarters Nine-Zero via telephone from London, he said the process for ‘dismantling’ his party had begun from March 11. Wanted criminals were brought at Nine-Zero and portrayed as if they were arrested from there, he added.
Hussain regretted the fact that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s residences were not raided for arresting Gullu Butt and releasing arrested from police custody respectively.
“Has residence of any party chief been raided like mine?” he questioned.
A video was also shown during the speech showing Imran Khan using offensive language against Army generals.
PM Nawaz’s promise of forming a monitoring committee to oversee ongoing operation in Karachi has not been fulfilled as yet, Altaf Hussain lamented. He urged the prime minister and Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar not to issue anti-MQM statements.
MQM leaders have repeatedly expressed their reservations regarding the police and Rangers operation against criminals and terrorists, saying the party was being targeted in the guise of the operation.
Dozens of MQM workers among wanted convicts and suspects were arrested from and around the party headquarters Nine-Zero in a raid conducted by Rangers earlier in the month.
Rangers official later registered a case against Altaf Hussain for allegedly threatening them during a televised interview with Geo News.
Saulat Mirza, a former MQM worker and death row inmate, also hurled serious allegations against the party and Hussain in a confession video apparently from his death cell hours before his scheduled hanging on March 19. His execution was later postponed by the president.
The MQM workers, during today's speech, rejected the 'minus-Altaf-formula' when asked by the party chief and chanted slogans in his support.
Commenting on prevailing situation in Middle East, Hussain said Pakistan should not intervene in the war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
The MQM chief also raised his voice against adverse actions against Geo News and urged authorities to take steps in restoring the channel on its previous numbers. He said the TV channel has run out of funds to pay off wages to its employees, who were suffering badly.
Altaf Hussain said that the media group should be forgiven for any mistakes it made in the past and all restrictions should be lifted against it.
He also lauded the services rendered by founder of Geo and Jang group Mir Khalilur Rehman for the creation of Pakistan.
