Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday issued notices to federal and provincial governments on a petition seeking a ban on Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and disqualification of its lawmakers following anti-state speech of their leader on August 22.
Headed by Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, the SHC bench took up the hearing of constitutional petition filed by Moulvi Iqbal Haider, a practicing lawyer and a chairman of Awami Himayat Tehreek Pakistan, submitting that as the MQM is involved in anti-state activities; therefore, it should be banned.
The petitioner submitted that the MQM founder had delivered anti-Pakistan speech during a hunger strike camp on August, 22 but the legislators of the party had not raised agitation against their founder. “Instead of expressing anxiety on founder’s statements, the other leaders of the party just disassociated themselves from his vitriolic speech just for the sake of their own skin,” he added.
He contended that MQM’s legislators had no right to keep parliamentarians’ offices as they got votes in the name of their founder who was involved in anti-state activities. He requested the court to pass the directives of prosecuting the MQM’s parliamentarians under Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 and Article 6 of the Constitution of Pakistan.
Haider maintained in his petition that it was the requirement of the law in term of Supreme Court’s judgment in Abdul Wali Khan case that the MQM should be banned from doing politics in the country and its legislators be disqualified. The petitioner requested the SHC to direct the Senate chairman, National Assembly and Sindh Assembly speaker to disqualify the legislators of the party from the senate, national assembly and Sindh assembly, respectively.
After the initial hearing, the SHC issued notices to the lawyers of the federal and provincial governments to make sure the submission of their respective comments in the next hearing.
