MQM brand of politics unacceptable

Politics of ghunda ghardi hurting both the country and the party

What happened in Karachi after the anti-Pakistan address to the MQM hunger strikers by Altaf Hussain and his incitement to the party workers to attack the media houses to teach them a lesson, was outrageous to say the least. This is not for the first time it has happened in Karachi which has been a hostage to the militant pursuits of the party ever since it emerged on the political horizon of the country. It is also not for the first time that Altaf Hussain has indulged in this kind of indiscretion. His anti-Pakistan rhetoric and the subsequent attack on the media houses by MQM workers has rightly received country-wide condemnation.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also felt hurt by what Altaf Hussain said about Pakistan and expressed the resolve to hold him accountable for each and every word that he uttered against the motherland, reflecting true sentiments of a son of the soil and his call of duty as Chief executive of the country. The crackdown against the criminal elements involved in attacks on media outlets, arrest of MQM leaders and closure of MQM offices by the Rangers is a right response to the provocative actions of MQM. Perhaps a time has come for a decisive action to resurrect Karachi from the militant political culture for good. The brand of politics practiced by MQM is absolutely unacceptable.

The targeted operation in Karachi was started in September 2013 by the federal government in consultation with and consensus of all the political parties after the failure of the Sind government to check acts of terrorism, target killings, extortions, land grabbing and turf war between militant wings of the political parties including MQM, PPP and ANP; an irrefutable reality as also pointed out by the Supreme Court while hearing a case on law and order situation in Karachi. The reason why the Sind government failed to control the situation in Karachi was that both the ruling PPP and its coalition partner MQM were themselves part of the problem, as the militants and target killers enjoyed their patronage. The public pressure after the SC verdict was so intense that these parties had no choice but to support the targeted operation by Rangers publicly, though they never wanted it to happen.

Ever since the commencement of the targeted operation by Rangers, which later also became one of the top priorities of the National Action Plan, I have been expressing the apprehensions in my columns that both these parties would try to undermine this operation at some stage when the criminals involved in the heinous crimes like terrorism and target killing are captured and start revealing their connections and their sponsors. Those fears have been vindicated. MQM is persistently accusing Rangers of witch-hunt and targeting only MQM in the wake of JIT report on Baldia Town fire, arrest of proclaimed target killers from nine zero, recovery of arms from the party headquarter and the revelations made by a number of arrested criminals in their confessional statements about MQM having sponsored the target killings, especially the statement made by Saulat Mirza. The party has been using different ploys to pressurize the government to back-off, including frequent resort to strikes and even resignations from the legislatures. Currently it is also part of the anti-government coalition formed in the backdrop of Panama Leaks. But it is encouraging to note that neither the civilian leadership nor the military establishment has blinked. They are determined to restore normalcy in Karachi by continuing crackdown against target killers, extortionists and terrorists without any let-up or succumbing to political expediencies.

MQM now stands fully exposed in regards to its anti-Pakistan posture and its militant credentials. The best course for MQM is to discard its unenviable past, disown the criminals and allow the law to take its course. It is undoubtedly a potent political force enjoying unstinted support of the Urdu speaking community and it should behave like a political party. Instead of persisting with its mode of denials of any connection with the criminals it must accept the ground realities and revisit its political creed accordingly.

PPP, the ruling party in Sind which also supported its own militant wing in the on-going turf war in Karachi, is also not happy about the arrest of Dr. Asim and the criminals who were affiliated with the party or enjoyed its support for their criminal actions including target killings like the MQM militants. It also has taken up cudgels against the PML (N) government and joined forces with other political parties, including PTI to start an agitation against the government on the issue of Panama Leaks. This ostensibly is a well calculated move to pressurize the government, like MQM, to retract from the targeted operation in Karachi. The PPP also has shown reluctance to extend the mandate of Rangers.

In view of the prevailing situation and the harrowing tales about terrorism, targeted killings and terror related corruption in Sind, revealed by the arrested criminals there is no doubt whatsoever about the fact that both these parties are guilty of pushing Karachi into the crucible of precipice and the law and order in the city could not be restored without a ruthless and indiscriminate crackdown against those involved in the heinous crimes. It is satisfying to note that as a result of the actions of the Rangers, fully backed by the federal government and the security establishment, normalcy is gradually returning in Karachi. Incidents of terrorism, target killing, extortion and land grabbing have been effectively reduced to minimum and the citizens of Karachi are very happy about it and so are the people of Pakistan.

The sordid reality remains that the criminals arrested so far have invariably accepted their affiliations with either of the two parties. What these parties need to realize is that unlike the past half-heated operations, the targeted operation is a well determined and uncompromising effort to eliminate the scourge of terrorism, target killings, extortion and terror related corruption. The option of going back on it is simply out of question. Their political tactics are not going to distract the government from its objective of restoring peace in Karachi and making the criminals to pay for their heinous crimes. This resolve and stance of the government and the military leadership is fully backed by the people of Pakistan. By persisting with their pro-criminal antics to cover up the likely involvement of the big guns of their parties in patronizing them, both the MQM and PPP are treading a wrong path which ultimately could lead to an irretrievable political damage to both of them. To remain relevant to the national political landscape they will have to rethink their strategies. It is probably the right time for both of them to give a serious thought to taking a break from their unreasonable positions and propagandist approach against the Rangers and the government. Karachi needs to be and must be resurrected from the quick sand that it has been pushed into, at any cost.