Money laundering case
ISLAMABAD: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain’s getting off the hook in the apparently grave money-laundering case did indeed produce a wonderful news for him in London, but it didn’t help him in any way in retrieving his lost political standing in Pakistan.
Hardly anybody in the government, political and public circles in Pakistan has ever had even a faint expectation and hope that the result of the Scotland Yard investigation into this charge, which is considered extremely serious in Britain, would be different from what has been announced now. Everyone here firmly believed, and rightly so, that British authorities were unlikely to proceed against Altaf Hussain in a meaningful manner for their own interests in a way that he is finally tried and punished.
There was none in Pakistan, at least not publicly known, who openly rejoiced over Altaf Hussain’s exoneration, a fact that abundantly reflected his political position particularly in the MQM. Had the supremo maintained the old stranglehold over it, there would have massive celebrations, spanning more than one day, in Karachi and Hyderabad by it, which would also have been bombarded with his thunderous speeches.
As Altaf Hussain was greatly down in the aftermath of his August 22 anti-Pakistan ranting, he is certainly buoyed up by his acquittal in the money laundering case as he has got rid of a severe allegation. By going ahead with the investigation for months, British authorities did create an impression in Pakistan that they were serious and would take the case to a court of law for trial.
The MQM founder’s temporary happiness apart, his real joy lies in regaining the control of the party he created and led for decades single-handed in a way that only a few political leaders of the world had done with such an unquestionable command. His iron grip did not lose despite his exile in London for the past two and a half decades.
However, a major jolt he received when superior courts banned the telecast of his interviews and statements by TV channels and their publication in the print media. His downfall started at this point as he was deprived of the endless high-watt publicity while sitting thousands of miles away from Pakistan. His August 22 anti-Pakistan diatribe proved the proverbial last straw that broke the camel’s back.
This time, there was no getting away with whatever he has been saying and doing at will. His own party instantly abandoned him. This wedge continued to widen with every passing day. Now, it has become unbridgeable and there are virtually two parties – the MQM Pakistan headed by Dr Farooq Sattar and the MQM London comprising just a handful of leaders, who all are dual nationals and prefer to stay abroad instead of coming back to Pakistan.
They are desperately trying to take back the MQM from Farooq Sattar but have so far been unable to meet success. Living in the past, they are issuing one verdict after the other but nobody is listening and implementing its decisions in Pakistan. The fight persists with the MQM Pakistan exuding confidence that it will hold together against the onslaught from London.
The government was shocked over the dropping of money laundering investigation against Altaf Hussain as Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has worked hard to assist British authorities in all kinds of probes against the MQM founder and his comrades. These probes also related to the murder of Dr Imran Farooq in London. While British agencies are also giving the impression that they are also seriously looking into this case, there is hardly any expectation in Pakistan that it will culminate in the trial of the real culprits.
The minister says people of Pakistan are closely looking at the situation regarding the cases against Altaf Hussain and how the British law acted. Altaf Hussain is facing cases of murder, money laundering and incitement to violence, he stated. “Police and intelligence agencies are probing the matter of discovery of weapons from a house in Karachi.
A list of weapons was also found among the documents recovered from the house of Altaf Hussain by the Metropolitan Police in London. This list had some connection with the weapons found in Karachi.”
On its part, Pakistani authorities particularly interviewed Sarfraz Merchant, an accused in the now discharged case, as he came back from London more than once on their request. This inquest pertained to the funding provided to the MQM London by Indian spy agency Research & Analysis Wing (RAW). The process is still going on. At the same time, the police here have also registered the case for the murder of Imran Farooq and two accused are being tried on the charge.