KARACHI: Blasting Peoples Party for what he called creating a divide between Sindhis and non-Sindhis in the province by getting passed the new local government bill from the provincial assembly on Monday, MQM chief Altaf Hussain urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to provide justice to the MQM and its voters.
“On the basis of its majority, the PPP is taking oppressive measures against people of urban areas of Sindh...more than half of the Sindh population is with MQM so I appeal to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the federal government to provide justice to the MQM and its voters within the sphere of the constitution and law,” said Mr Hussain.
The London-based MQM leader addressed via phone four public meetings in three places in Karachi and one in Mirpurkhas in connection with the Aug 22 by-elections.
The MQM is contesting by-elections on two seats of the Sindh Assembly and one of the National Assembly from Karachi and one provincial assembly seat from Mirpurkhas.
Assuring the federal government of his party’s ‘unconditional’ cooperation even in testing times, Mr Hussain asked the premier to provide the MQM a chance to serve the people of urban and rural areas of Sindh. He said his party had supported Mr Sharif in his election to the post of prime minister despite the fact that he did not need MQM’s votes.
Mr Hussain said India was violating the ceasefire on the Line of Control and assured the federal government and the armed forces that MQM workers and people would support them for defence and integrity of Pakistan.
He criticised the PPP government in Sindh for adopting the Sindh Local Government Bill, 2013. He said the MQM had rejected ‘this dictatorial system’ and added that PPP had started a process to divide people of Sindh on the same pattern as in 1972 when it imposed the quota system for rural and urban areas of Sindh.
He asked workers and supporters of the MQM to remain prepared mentally and physically for launching a ‘peaceful protest’ against all oppressive and dictatorial measures. He advised the PPP leadership to respect the mandate given to the MQM by people of urban areas of the province. He asked his loyalists to remain committed if he was arrested in the United Kingdom under any ‘false and fabricated’ charges.
Mr Hussain introduced MQM candidates Mohammad Ali Rashid (NA-254), Abdul Rauf Siddiqui (PS-103), Mohammad Hussain (PS-95) and Dr Zafar Kamali (PS-64 Mirpurkhas) and urged people to vote for the MQM on Aug 22.
He announced setting up an accountability cell within the MQM to keep an eye on the performance of the party’s elected representatives. Former senator Ahmed Ali will head the cell.