There cannot be two opinions that the government has been unable to measure up to the enormity of crisis in Karachi until the violence triggered by gang wars between different ethnic groups became impossible to contain. It is difficult to predict the possible backlash of Dr Zulfikar Mirza’s offensive diatribe against the MQM which was partly directed at Interior Minister Rehman Malik.
Even though the MQM is not known for taking such attacks lying down, it was strange to see its leadership confine itself to ordinary denials rather than coming up with more a convincing response to Dr Mirza’s intense finger pointing at Altaf bhai whom he had accused of having been part of American plot to dismember Pakistan. And there were reasons to be surprised by Faisal Sabzwari’s innocuous reaction: “This is nothing but slander and a white lie. Dr Mirza has simply tried to mislead the international community, the armed forces of Pakistan, national defence institutions and patriotic people by making these unfounded and baseless allegations”.
The Sindh’s former senior minister, who resigned from his political and governmental posts, would be under no compulsion to refrain from making more disclosures and further exposing a particular ethnic group responsible for disrupting peace in the country’s commercial hub by extending patronage to the criminals involved in murder, extortion, kidnapping for ransom and other dreadful acts. Since he wanted to be taken seriously he said whatever he had to say on oath by holding the Holy Quran over his head while addressing a press conference at the Karachi Press Club. Maybe he was aware that the MQM was not in possession of incontrovertible evidence to establish that he was also linked with gangsters and had been patronising the killers.
As Dr Mirza’s outbursts against the MQM show no sign of abating, the focus now seems to have gradually shifted to the suo motu hearing of Karachi violence by the Supreme Court which was informed by IGP Sindh Wajid Durrani that there were several no-go areas in the restive city which were inaccessible even for the law enforcement agencies. But he did not know how many torture cells were there in the city and who were operating them which led the court to observe that it was some sort of fear that restrained the provincial police chief from speaking the truth.
Perhaps, the apex court will be the only appropriate forum to judge the veracity of the allegations levelled against the MQM by Dr Mirza who had requested the five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry to allow him to be party in the proceedings. The CJ has done the nation a great favour by taking timely cognizance of the ongoing spate of violence in Karachi. And he must have reasons for doing so. As the carnage of May 12, 2007 would continue to haunt the nation, Chief Justice Chaudhry would be keen to know who the perpetrators were and who had actually stopped the Rangers from taking any action against them.
That Dr Mirza, who has had a fairly long stint as Sindh home minister, can help the court get to the bottom of the crisis threatening peace and tranquillity in Karachi for quite some time now is acknowledged by many mainstream political parties and the people from different walks of life. Meanwhile, the MQM should also be provided an opportunity to explain its position regarding the allegations levelled against the party and its founder by the Sindh’s former senior minister. But there would be few takers for Mr Sabzwari’s assertion that his party had no dispute with other ethnic groups and it was as concerned about the lives of Pashtuns as that of Mohajirs.
Everybody knew who was behind the continuing violence in the country’s largest metropolis and the people have been pointing the finger of accusation at the MQM in private. But nobody had the courage to talk about it openly. Dr Mirza turned out to be the first politician to lay the blame squarely on the doorstep of the MQM while declaring Altaf bhai a terrorist. The perception that he had done so after taking the president into confidence is yet to be verified. If it’s so, his basic party membership should have been revoked immediately. The fact that the PPP leadership is still trying to keep the MQM in the ruling coalition makes it difficult to comprehend.
No doubt, democracy highlights the need for political leadership’s commitment and initiative towards co-existence. But while pursuing the policy of reconciliation, President Zardari should not ignore his government’s first and foremost obligation: to mitigate sufferings of the hapless citizens of Karachi. They cannot be left at the mercy of the corrupt and repressive mafia; restoring peace to the blighted megapolis is too important to be impeded by political expediency.
The writer is Executive Editor, Pakistan Today