Altaf, Merchant at odds over £500,000

LONDON: Exiled leader of the MQM-London Altaf Hussain has rejected claim of his former associate Sarfraz Merchant that the London-based leadership of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) owes him nearly £500,000 in various loan arrangements.

After Geo News aired report in which Sarfraz Merchant threatened to go to London High Court if the MQM-London leadership failed to return his money, the MQM leader issued a statement “categorically” denying “the baseless allegations leveled against him by Sarfraz Merchant”.

In a statement issued from MQM International Secretariat in London, Altaf Hussain said that he had “never ever been engaged with Mr Merchant in any financial matter whatsoever”. But Sarfraz Merchant said that MQM-London leader was “disowning him in the manner that’s MQM’s hallmark of first using and then abandoning.

“The MQM-London leader has not denied that I paid a total of £250,000 in MQM London’s account, which are held in Edgware branch. My question to Altaf Hussain is to explain what that amount was for. MQM has issued me official donation receipts duly signed which are with me and Metropolitan Police service.

It has been established during the investigation by the Met Police that the MQM is not a registered charity and can't accept donations and if they did it was a fraud. I am a victim of fraud and deception. I am also going to register a formal complaint with the Met Police, National Terrorism Financial Investigations Unit (NTFIU) and National Crime Agency (NCA) to prove the fact as disclosed earlier by Met Police during their Money Laundering investigation that MQM in London UK is neither registered as a political party nor a registered charity. Altaf Hussain is leader of the MQM-London and that account belonged to him where I paid the money. Altaf Hussain has not said a word about the payments I made to him and for which I have shown proofs to the Geo News.”

Sarfraz Merchant said that he had proofs which showed bank transactions from his personal account in MQM’s UK accounts. “Altaf Hussain knows what these payments were for and for him to say that he has never dealt with me is opportunistic. I made these payments on Altaf Hussain’s requests. He has made a statement disowning me in the hope that I will go away but he’s mistaken.”

He said that it was on Altaf Hussain’s request that he volunteered to help him after the money-laundering raid at his house and became co-accused in the money-laundering case which was dropped around 5 months ago.

“I was arrested and my house raided. The police has evidence of what I gave to the MQM and the MQM has accepted that I gave them donation and loans amounting to around half a million pounds. He has attempted to disown me as a standard MQM policy but I am going to fight to get my money back.”