Islamabad: Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf has reiterated that Muthaida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was involved in the May 12, 2007 massacre which killed more than 50 people in Pakistan’s financial hub of Karachi.
Speaking exclusively to saach.tv, senior leader of PTI, Umar Cheema said Saturday that the then ruling party of Sindh, MQM perpetrated the brutal killings of dozens of people at a time when Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was expected to arrive in the city to address the people.
He said PTI presented evidence against MQM and its chief Altaf Hussain to Scotland Yard, and the legal process against them is in the pipeline.
“MQM should quit its terrorist activities in the country,” Cheema said.
Senior leader of PTI, Doctor Israr Shah said that MQM was involved, directly or indirectly, in the killings of May 12. He said MQM was at the helm of affairs during the tragedy, and its role during the tragedy was extremely suspicious. Dr. Israr said the most of the people who died on May 12 were workers of PPP and lawyers.
Speaking to saach.tv, senior leader of lawyers’ movement, Aitzaz Ahsan blamed the then MQM-led Sindh government of attempting to abduct Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudary, who had reached Karachi Airport on May 12. Aitzaz also said that MQM’s government arrested him at the Karachi Airport, and placed containers on the roads to thwart people from welcoming the Chief Justice.
The stalwart of lawyers’ movement said the blame for the killings goes towards MQM, which was the ruling party in the central and provincial governments.
“Chief Justice went to several cities, including Peshawar, Abbottavad, Sukkur, Sargodha, Lahore, Multan and Quetta, but he was only stopped in Karachi, which was solely controlled by MQM,” he said.
Aitzaz said that when dozens of people were killed in Karachi, the then President Pervez Musharraf addressed a public gathering in Islamabad and said that MQM had exhibited its power in Karachi.
Commenting on MQM’s claim that its workers were killed during the carnage, Aitzaz said that there is a perception that MQM claims the dead bodies of people who belong to other political parties. Aitzaz termed MQM as the “intolerant favourites of Karachi”.
Aitzaz Ahsan said that Pervez Musharraf offered him to become the Prime Minister on the condition that he disassociates himself from the lawyers’ movement. Moreover, he divulged that he turned down several requests by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence’s (MI) officials to meet them.
“I will be making startling revelations pertaining to the hidden realities of lawyers movement in my book which will be published soon,” Aitzaz said.
Senior leader of MQM, Waseem Akhter emphatically refuted all allegations levelled by Aitzaz Ahsan and PTI leaders. He said PTI was not cognizant of the reality of the May 12 tragedy.
Waseem Akhtar claimed that members of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Awami National Party (ANP) were involved in killing dozens of people, including 14 members of MQM, on May 12.
“Unlike all other parties which made false claims of their members being killed on May 12, we have disclosed the identities of our members who embraced martyrdom during the Karachi massacre,” MQM leader said.
