The nine lives of MQM

Perceptions are sometimes as important in politics as reality

The MQM has not only won NA-246 but has also surpassed its 2013 performance in securing the ratio of votes cast in the constituency. This, despite the consistent campaign against the party by the law enforcement agencies since the beginning of the Karachi Operation. Also, it achieved the victory despite the propaganda by the PTI and Jamaat e Islami against it.

Most of the people outside urban Sindh have one opinion about the MQM. Stories exposing MQM as a party involved in target killing, extortion and China cutting appearing in the media confirm their already held notions about the party and its leader Altaf Hussain. The same stories have an opposite effect on the party supporters in Karachi and Hyderabad who vote for it.

The supporters consider the MQM the only party that cares for the Mohajirs and struggles to achieve a rightful position for them. Despite the party calling itself Muttahida Qaumi Movement, they still consider it the original and genuine Mohajir Qaumi Movement.

One may differ with the supporters for their calling themselves Mohajirs after sixty eight years. One can challenge their perception of being a community deprived of their rights. One can prove that people living in most other cities in Pakistan have fewer amenities and lesser chances of upward social mobility than Karachi’ites. Perceptions however are sometimes as important in politics as realities.

The people of Karachi face numerous problems as happens in big cities. The Karachi’ites too have a fairly large share of these problems. The MQM claims to be the sole representative of the people of urban Sindh. Many Urdu speaking people agree with the party.

As Wusatullah Khan puts it, the MQM is the ‘sole political proprietor’ of Karachi. He says there is no parameter to gauge MQM roots in Karachi as the party enjoys ‘mysterious’ strength that affects every segment of society. The party can gather crowds of thousands within minutes at any intersection of the city.

“For instance, the traders’ bodies and even the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry always question political parties’, including PTI’s, protest calls arguing that they affect commercial activity and the economy. But do they ever dare do the same when MQM comes up with an appeal for a city shutdown?”

The only party targeted during the Karachi operation was MQM. It seemed that the agencies were all out to demolish it. But the agencies overplayed their hand which benefitted the MQM

It is not enough to accuse a party possessing a considerable following of a wrongdoing. In a civilised society equally important is to prove the charge. In case the accusations continue and the efforts to prove them falter again and again, this leads to the formation of a perception among its followers that the party is being accused falsely on account of partiality.

Who will believe imran Khan in Karachi, who once promised to take the entire pile of evidence he said he had collected and which was enough to prosecute Altaf Hussain in British courts? He took trunks full of documents to Britain but what had begun as a bang ended with a whimper. Imran Khan never spoke on the issue later on. Ditto in the case of PPP’s Zulfiqar Mirza.

This explains why the highly serious allegations against the MQM leveled after the initiation of the operation in Karachi have failed to reduce its vote bank. The only party targeted during the Karachi operation was MQM. It seemed that the agencies were all out to demolish it. But the agencies overplayed their hand which benefitted the MQM.

Soon after the operation began MQM offices were searched, weapons of “Indian origin” discovered and office bearers arrested. Either the charges were subsequently dropped or the matter hushed up. MQM’s former MPA Nadeem Hashmi was arrested for killing two policemen. The man was subsequently released after the charges could not be proved.

Then came the devastating charge by DG Rangers, Karachi. It was alleged that former ports and shipping minister Senator Babar Ghauri had connived in the disappearance of 19,000 containers loaded with arms and ammunition for US-led forces in Afghanistan. This was a highly serious charge coming from a responsible officer. The American embassy, however, rejected the claim. The Rangers chief subsequently had to eat his words.

Come 2015 and there was a raid on the MQM central office. The search yielded some wanted, others convicted, in serious criminal cases including murder. There was the allegation that among the recovered weapons were some reportedly stolen from Nato containers. The State Department, however, poured cold water over the allegation, maintaining that the US “and Isaf have never used the Karachi port to transport weapons/explosives”. One wonders why the intelligence agencies are fond of adding the charge of possessing foreign made weapons whenever they arrest alleged terrorists.

The story about Rizwan Qureshi accused in Baldia factory fire having been arrested became big news and was widely publicised by the media. A report submitted by a Rangers official in the Sindh High Court said that MQM was behind the fire incident that claimed the lives of at least 258 factory workers. The report was based on the information collected from Qureshi. MQM disowned the worker. Suddenly the story disappeared from the media.

Saulat Mirza’s video jolted the political landscape. But soon this too gave rise to serious questions. How could a man in a death cell with strict bar on meeting outsiders get his confessional statement recorded? How could he then circulate the video among a number of media houses simultaneously, who repeatedly showed it for nearly three days?

While the stories exposing the MQM were taken on their face value by most people in the rest of the country, for MQM supporters in urban Sindh they were false propaganda.

The JI is going to be the last choice for most people in any province for the simple reason that the party is not seen to be capable of coming to power anytime in near future

The reports about the money laundering case against Altaf Hussain confirmed the culpability of the MQM leader in the eyes of the rest of the country while for the MQM supporters these were attempts to malign the mohajirs’ sole spokesman.

Political parties with sufficient following and their leaders can only be replaced through political processes rather than legal action and trials. Criminals, be they in political parties or elsewhere, need to be brought to justice. But any perception of foul play is bound to turn them into martyrs.

Political process requires political parties to be constantly active in the constituencies where they want to compete and replace others. The MQM’s second tier leadership is easily accessible to the voters. They are mostly whole time politicians.

For the PTI leadership, Karachi was never the first choice. Imran Khan spent most of his time in Punjab and KP. Unless the party’s leadership is seen to be giving Karachi the importance it deserves, it won’t be considered a viable alternative to the MQM.

The JI is going to be the last choice for most people in any province for the simple reason that the party is not seen to be capable of coming to power anytime in near future. The MQM on the other hand is rarely out of the government. It has been a coalition partner with the PPP, the PML-N and even with PML-Q under Musharraf.

The MQM has faced two full scale operations. It is going to sit out the ongoing campaign also. Like cats it can survive things that are severe enough to kill others.