Date : 17th March, 1998.
'No stop to operation in Karachi since 1992'
KARACHI: Muttehida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has said that there has been no stop to 'operation Karachi ' since 1992 and it is still in progress with a varying pace. While briefing a group of Islamabad journalists at '90' on Sunday, the MQM elected representatives said that despite being coalition partners of the government their party workers were being victimised. Hundreds of the workers and party loyalists are languishing in jails without a single hearing of cases registered against them. Though the punishment in these cases is not more than few months, they are behind the bars for the last four years, said Senator Aftab Shaikh. He added that the elected members of their party could not enter their homes because their residences were in 'no go areas'.
To a question why their party is still
staying in the government despite facing such a situation, he replied that the
governments were helpless to take any decision as the things were controlled by
state powers. Aftab said that he did not bail out Benazir because the party had
found that her intentions were malafide but "we have not yet found any doubt in
the intentions of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif." When asked if their party has
opposed national stand on Kashmir, he said that this was a baseless propaganda.
To a question about Chief Minister Liaqat Jatoi's remarks that it was the problem of only
1200 workers, he said that it was not the same as it was the matter of 1200 families which
had been displaced by the criminal elements. He demanded the government to arrest all
those against whom cases have been filed by his party including Afaq Ahmad. About
MQM's demand for release of its workers, he said that this was also a
misinterpretation of the MQMs version. He said that the MQM had been demanding from
the coalition partners the release of only those workers who were arrested over two
years ago and were still waiting for appearance before the court.