KARACHI: The self-exiled leader of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM-London), Altaf Hussain, has been booked in the murder case of two workers of the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP), a political faction that was formed by his former aide, Mustafa Kamal in March 2016.
Muhammad Azhar, a PSP worker belonging to the Nazimabad neighborhood of Karachi, was killed on the spot whereas Muhammad Naeem succumbed to his injuries on the way to a hospital after three unidentified gunmen entered the party’s office on Sunday night and opened fire on people who were sitting inside, Syed Fahad Hussain, the plaintiff who was also wounded in the firing incident, said in the First Information Report (FIR) of the event on Tuesday.
“The Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s founder Altaf Hussain has been booked in the case under Section 302 and on terrorism charges,” Nawaz Brohi, a police officer, told Arab News.
“Our peaceful workers have been martyred by forces that want to disrupt Karachi’s tranquility. We consider it a conspiracy against Pakistan,” PSP President, Anees Qaimkhani, told Arab News, adding that his party workers were attacked when they were peacefully sitting in the office.
Qaimkhani said that he and his party’s chairman, Kamal had formed PSP when “Altaf Hussain’s reign of terror” was still palpable in the city. “Besides the law enforcement agencies, the credit for eradicating that situation goes to PSP since it encouraged its workers to hold a pen instead of a gun,” Qaimkhani said.
“Our workers will remain peaceful, and it is the responsibility of law enforcement agencies to apprehend the culprits,” he added.
Brohi said efforts were afoot to arrest the accused.
Altaf Hussain booked in PSP workers’ murder case
Altaf Hussain booked in PSP workers’ murder case
- Authorities have also brought terrorism charges against MQM’s chief
- Pak Sarzameen Party leaders say their workers will continue to remain peaceful
Pakistan opposition rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to demand release of Imran Khan
- PTI-led gathering calls the former PM a national hero and demands the release of all political prisoners
- Government says the opposition failed to draw a large crowd and accuses PTI of damaging its own politics
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan at a rally in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, describing him as a national hero who continues to command public support.
The gathering came days after a rare and strongly worded briefing by the military’s media chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, who dismissed Khan as “narcissistic” and “mentally ill” on Friday while responding to the former premier’s allegations that Pakistan’s chief of defense forces was responsible for undermining the constitution and rule of law.
He said that Khan was promoting an anti-state narrative which had become a national security threat.
The participants of the rally called for “civilian supremacy” and said elected representatives should be treated with respect.
“We, the people of Pakistan, regard Imran Khan as a national hero and the country’s genuinely elected prime minister, chosen by the public in the February 8, 2024 vote,” said a resolution presented at the rally in Peshawar. “We categorically reject and strongly condemn the notion that he or his colleagues pose any kind of threat to national security.”
“We demand immediate justice for Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and all political prisoners, and call for their prompt release,” it added, referring to Khan’s wife who is also in prison. “No restrictions should be placed on Imran Khan’s meetings with his family, lawyers or political associates.”
Addressing the gathering, Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, denied his administration was not serious about security issues amid increased militant activity. However, he maintained the people of his province had endured the worst of Pakistan’s conflict with militancy and urged a rethinking of long-running security policies.
The resolution asked the federal government to restore bilateral trade and diplomatic channels with Afghanistan, saying improved cross-border ties were essential for the economic stability of the region.
The trade between the two neighbors has suffered as Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration in Kabul of sheltering and facilitating armed groups that it says launch cross-border attacks to target its civilians and security forces. Afghan officials deny the claim.
The two countries have also had deadly border clashes in recent months that have killed dozens of people on both sides.
Some participants of the rally emphasized the restoration of democratic freedoms, judicial independence and space for political reconciliation, calling them necessary to stabilize the country after years of political confrontation.
Reacting to the opposition rally, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar said the PTI and its allies could not gather enough people.
“In trying to build an anti-army narrative, they have ruined their own politics,” he said, adding that the rally’s reaction to the military’s media chief’s statement reflected “how deeply it had stung.”
“There was neither any argument nor any real response,” he added, referring to what was said by the participants of the rally.
