LONDON: The family of a former slain Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader and founding member has called on the Pakistani authorities to re-open the assassination case of his father and help the family get justice.
The demand has been made by London-based SM Tabish Tariq, 28, whose father SM Tariq, former Finance Secretary of MQM, was killed in Karachi on 23rd June 1995 in Karachi’s Fedeal Block 14 area.
“It’s my family’s demand that the case of my father should be investigated thoroughly and we should be provided justice. I owe it to my father to ensure that his killers are brought to the justice. The MQM leader has broadly suggested that the Pakistani spy agencies were involved in his killing but those who knew my father and were active at that time in the MQM politics has told that is not the case and my father was killed because he was seen to have defied the party leadership by supporting Azeem Tariq. Blaming it on agencies is a cover-up,” SM Tabish Tariq said.
In a series of social media messages, the slain leader’s son said that he had distanced himself from the London set-up after 22nd August speech and what has happened since then has harmed the “cause of Mohajirs”.
He added: “We are proud Muhajirs and it’s our identity. My forefathers made Pakistan and sacrificed everything for this country. We can have grievances with the policies of the establishment and the government but that doesn’t mean calling for the break-up of our only motherland. Pakistan is my home and no one can take that away from us,” he said.
Prior to high-profile murder of S M Tariq, one of the MQM’s founders Azeem Tariq was killed at his home on May 1, 1993. Azeem Tariq had earlier fallen out with the MQM leader and founder altaf Hussain and made several statements against Hussain. SM Tariq had joined Azeem Tariq and supported his stance against Altaf Hussain, according to MQM sources who knew the slain leader well. SM Tabish Tariq’s uncle SM Aslam has served as MQM’s MNA twice. SM Tariq had refused to send Khidmat Khalaq Committee (now KKF) money to Altaf Hussain as he believed that it was to help the charity wing and not for MQM’s politics in London,” said a source who worked with the slain leader.
S M Tariq was gunned down as soon as he came out of his residence in his car after being intercepted by armed me, riding a car, who sprayed him with over a dozen bullets. He died instantly. Until today, his killers remain at large.
SM Tabish Tariq was 6 years old when his father SM Tariq was murdered. At the age of 14 he moved with his mother Mrs Shabnam Tariq to London. Both the son and mother have been active in the MQM politics from London but it’s understood that both have now fallen out with the MQM-London’s leadership. SM Tabish Tariq served as social media lead for the MQM’s London chapter and his mother has served as MQM UK’s organisational committee member and as member of member of International Secretariat’s women wing.
Insiders told that last week at the MQM International Secretariat, Shabnam Tariq stormed out when during a telephonic call to the MQM office, the MQM founder lashed out at her and made disparaging remarks about her slain husband. The MQM leader suggested in that conversation, said the source, that SM Tariq and others who had defied him met their fate.
Shabnam Tariq refused to comment when approached but SM Tabish through his twitter account said that “humiliation was unacceptable and when the MQM founder himself suggests that my father was killed according to a plan then there is more to his murder than we know”. Sadly, he said, my father’s murder case not investigated and no effort was made. “I appeal to the government of Pakistan to re-open the case and help us get justice”.