KARACHI: In a much-hyped merger, Mustafa Kamal and Dr Farooq Sattar \u2014 who had formed their separate factions \u2014 Thursday joined the Mutahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P).<\/p>\n
Kamal had established the Pak Sarzameen Party and Sattar formed the MQM-P Bahali Committee after developing differences with the party.<\/p>\n
In a press conference flanked by the top brass of the party, MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said the “graveness” of the situation in Sindh’s urban areas requires all people to join hands.<\/p>\n
“It is important that under the circumstances, the people, whose families laid down their lives for Pakistan’s formations, should come together for a historic struggle,” the MQM-P leader said.<\/p>\n
Siddiqui said that the elements who wished to divide the nation are disappointed and vowed that the rejuvenated MQM-P would live up to the dreams of the masses and strive for urban cities’ development.<\/p>\n
“I welcome you all \u2014 Kamal, Sattar, and their aides. I hope that all of you will strive for the nation,” the former federal minister for information and technology added.<\/p>\n
In response to a question from a journalist, the MQM-P convener said that the party would not allow the staging of the upcoming local body polls \u2014 a move that will invite criticism from opposing parties.<\/p>\n
For his part, Kamal said this day will be remembered in history as an \u201cimportant day\u201d as certain decisions would be taken today that are \u201cunthinkable\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we [the MQM-P leaders] talk about ourselves, then we have taken such unthinkable decisions in the past as well, which were beyond people\u2019s comprehension,\u201d he said, recalling that when he left MQM founder Altaf Hussain on August 14, 2013, he was a senator and the member of the Rabta committee.<\/p>\n
He clarified that he had no personal differences with Hussain and that the decision to leave the party was completely based on political differences.<\/p>\n
Walking the journalists down the events that took place in the past, Kamal recalled that in October 2013, then-member of the Rabta committee Anees Qaimkhani left Hussain\u2019s party, and for three years both leaders remained silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn March 3, 2016, we [Kamal and Qaimkhani] came to Karachi and bluntly spoke the truth, which was once again in the wider interest of the Muhajir cause,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Kamal said the decision taken on March 3 \u2014 the date when he formed his party \u2014 was for the people and nation.<\/p>\n
Lambasting the Pakistan Peoples\u2019 Party (PPP), the former senator said: \u201cWe did not remove the label of Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) from Karachi so that [PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali] Zardari can consider the metropolitan as his fiefdom.”<\/p>\n
He further added that the former president wants to make his son, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the next prime minister, while the people of Karachi and Hyderabad continue to suffer due to a lack of employment opportunities and basic facilities like the absence of clean drinking water, electricity, etc.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe PPP has constantly failed to deliver its promises while the PTI was also unable to perform in the city of lights,\u201d he said, asserting that if Zardari wants to make Bilawal the prime minister, he should address the grievances of the people of Karachi.<\/p>\n
He maintained that when the factions had differences among themselves, they were shown publically, and now that everybody has decided to join hands this is also in the wider interest of Karachi.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Muhajirs continue to suffer in Karachi then the same will be the fate of other communities,\u201d Kamal warned, adding that they have built Karachi before and will continue to do this under the leadership of Siddiqui.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KARACHI: In a much-hyped merger, Mustafa Kamal and Dr Farooq Sattar \u2014 who had formed their separate factions \u2014 Thursday joined the Mutahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P). Kamal had established the Pak Sarzameen Party and Sattar formed the MQM-P Bahali Committee after developing differences with the party. In a press conference flanked by the top brass […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":307022,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-307017","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-national"},"yoast_head":"\n