- Sattar says party being pushed to the wall
KARACHI: In yet another blow to Farooq Sattar-led Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, former deputy convener and senior party leader Nasir Jamal defected to the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) on Thursday, with PSP leader Anis Qaimkhani issuing calls for disbanding the Muttahida.
Addressing a press conference along with Qaimkhani, Jamal said the MQM-P had become a subject to turmoil due to conflict within its leadership.
Speaking on the occasion, Qaimkhani claimed that many MQM-P party workers and office-holders would move to the PSP after former deputy convener’s decision to join Mustafa Kamal.
“Many members and party workers belonging to the MQM-P, PTI and others are joining Kamal’s PSP,” he added.
MQM-P chief Farooq Sattar, on the other hand, said his party was being pushed to the wall, but added that it would show its strength and determination during Sunday’s rally.
Jamal was a staunch defender of MQM on social media against all criticisms when the party landed in hot waters after Rangers’ raid at Nine Zero in March 2015.
Qaimkhani claimed that those who joined the PSP had their houses attacked after the decision, but they didn’t budge from their decision. He also hit out at speculations surrounding the new entrants to PSP that the party had a ‘drycleaning’ mechanism to make new party leaders clean.
Since Mustafa Kamal’s revelations in March 2016, PSP held at least 100 press conferences which were followed by new inductions into the party, Qaimkhani said.
He said that MQM’s electoral success was mainly due to party’s organisation structure in the city.
Alongside Jamal, 16 other party workers of the MQM have also announced to join PSP.
On March 3, 2016, Mustafa Kamal held a startling press conference in which he revealed several criminal activities of MQM founder Altaf Hussain in the latter’s bid to keep control of the city. Addressing a crowded press conference in Karachi, Kamal had said, “We [party workers] took enmities for Altaf Hussain, but Mr Hussain doesn’t care about a single worker or any Urdu-speaking person.”
