Ali Raza Abidi’s first death anniversary observed

The first death anniversary of former Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) parliamentarian Syed Ali Raza Abidi was observed on Wednesday in an Imambargah.

A year ago, two unidentified armed had shot dead Abidi near his residence on Khayaban-e-Ghazi in Defence. A large number of people and political leaders, including the MQM-P’s Aamir Khan, Kunwar Naveed Jamil and Faisal Subzwari, attended the event.

The MQM-P leaders in a statement paid homage to Abidi and said sacrifices of all those killed during the movement’s struggle would eventually bring about the change. “Abidi’s loss was one from which not only the party but also the country could barely recover,” said Khan.

In the 2018 general elections, Abidi had contested against the current prime minister, Imran Khan, from NA-243, a constituency of Gulshan-e-Iqbal, and ranked second. In the 2013 general polls, he had won from NA-251.

After the last general elections, Abidi tendered his resignation from the MQM-Pakistan's basic membership in September 2018 over the party’s decision to not field him in the by-election in NA-243.

In November 2017, Abidi in a tweet had announced his resignation as member of the National Assembly over then MQM-P leader Farooq Sattar and Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) Chairman Mustafa Kamal's short-lived alliance. He, however, withdrew the resignation later.

Abidi was one of the leaders who had stood with Dr Sattar in the build-up to the 2018 elections when the MQM-P was witnessing an internal battle. His father Syed Ikhlaq Hussain Abidi was also involved in politics.