The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) found itself facing yet another controversy after letters purportedly written by the party to the Indian High Commission in Pakistan emerged on Thursday in which the MQM had asked the mission to raise its voice to safeguard human rights “particularly in Karachi”.
One letter — apparently penned by Nasreen Jalil of the party’s Central Rabita Committee —stresses the “lawlessness of law enforcement agencies” and requests the Indian High Commission to use “its good offices to improve the situation of urban Sindh”.
The letter undersigned by the MQM senator is addressed to Indian High Commissioner in Pakistan Dr TCA Raghavan.
It reads, “The targeted operation in Karachi was initiated to bring law and order in the city but since then, 40 MQM workers have been killed in custody, 90 party workers are missing while hundreds are killed in target killings. It added that that no compensation has been paid to the families of victims belonging to MQM who were killed “extra-judicially” or to those who are missing.
The document dated June 18, 2015 tells the HC that the provincial government did not form a monitoring committee to oversee the operation and to check whether the activities of law enforcement agencies are judicious.
The letter also laments the unchecked ‘high handedness’ of law enforcement agencies during the operation along with other issues in urban Sindh which, according to the letter, is giving rise to a feeling of alienation among the people of Karachi.
Another letter dated July 30 on a letterhead of the party’s international secretariat bears the subject ‘Unathorised arrest of MQM innocent workers’.
It reads: “We have the honour to bring to your kind notice that workers and sympathisers of MQM have been arrested while they were going from Karachi to Hyderabad to attend a marriage ceremony on 29th July 2015”.
“We request your honour to kindly look into this matter and raise your voice for the safeguard and protection of human values/rights particularly in Karachi.”
The letter is addressed to Indian HC Raghavan and undersigned by Arif Khan Advocate, ex MNA and member of Central Rabita Committee; Adbul Qadir Khanzada, ex-MNA and member of Central Rabita Committee, and Shabbir Qaimkhani, ex-MPA Sindh and Member of Central Rabita Committee.
Commenting on the fresh controversy, MQM’s parliamentary leader in the National Assembly, Farooq Sattar told reporters that “no letter has been written to the Indian High Commissioner regarding the arrest of party activists”.
“If any our leaders written to diplomats included the email address of Indian High Commissioner then it can be a technical error but it was not an intentional effort,” he said, not stating the exact contents of the letter or whom it was sent by.