If the Scotland Yard probe into Dr Imran Farooq’s murder case weren’t enough to unnerve the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), former Sindh home minister Dr Zulfiqar Mirza on Saturday reached London to help the British authorities investigate among other charges, money laundering and incitement to violence against MQM chief Altaf Hussain.
Sources in Mirza’s family told a private TV channel that the former provincial minister would meet Scotland Yard officials in the next few days. Mirza, who is settled with his family in Dubai, had flown to London when he was contacted by the British officials.
London’s Metropolitan Police and the Scotland Yard have confirmed that they are currently investigating the above mentioned charges against the MQM supreme leader, who is settled in Britain.
Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari, who is also in London these days, telephoned Mirza requesting him to not meet with the British investigators, sources informed the TV channel. The latter, however, refused to abide by the president’s advice, they added.
The Scotland Yard officials requested Mirza to produce the evidences, he had offered to present against the MQM and its chief Altaf Hussain back in 2011.
The senior Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader had resigned as vice president of PPP’s Sindh chapter as well as membership of the Sindh Assembly following spat with MQM – the then coalition partner of President Zardari’s party at the centre and in Sindh.
Mirza had levelled serious allegations on MQM terming the party and its head responsible for targeted killings in Karachi. He not only accused Sindh Governor Ishratul Ibad of patronising assassins but also accused MQM’s former minister for ports and shipping Babar Ghauri of being responsible for disappearance of NATO containers.
MQM, however, had condemned all the allegations hurled at it by Zulfiqar Mirza.