Mustafa Kamal, a former Karachi nazim and senator, and Anees Qaimkhani, a former MQM Rabita Committee deputy convener, have created a storm in Pakistan's politics by launching a scathing attack on Altaf Hussain and his MQM party after their arrival from Dubai on March 3.
Mustafa Kamal has accused Altaf Hussain and his party of links with Indian intelligence agency RAW and of "running gangs of hitmen." He also accused Altaf Hussain of turning innocent children into criminals.
In a speech that lasted nearly two hours, Mustafa Kamal said that "everyone knows Altaf Hussain has links with RAW. After Imran Farooq was murdered in 2010, England’s Scotland Yard found documents from his (Farooq's) house, and started summoning the MQM leadership (present in London) for interviews, including Altaf Hussain, who was grilled by British law enforcement for three consecutive days."
"They asked them (Altaf, Anwar, Tariq Mir) if they had links to India's spy agency, which was refused initially, but Scotland Yard produced documents after which the MQM leaders, including Altaf, confessed to getting support from RAW."
"The workers are unaware of the true situation. Altaf should come clean and tell the workers why he has been receiving funds from India's spy agency."
"Children from respected families have turned into agents and criminals, working against the state of Pakistan."
"Thousands have made sacrifices to secure a dozen individuals including Altaf Hussain and his aides."
Referring to the MQM supremo as “Altaf sahib” as compared to his earlier reverential use of “Altaf Bhai", he said Hussain was often intoxicated while addressing workers, and that his state worsened over time.
"We [Rabita Committee members] used to take responsibility for all his mistakes and actions."
"We sacrificed for Altaf, and did not distinguish between right and wrong, but Altaf does not care about his workers. Party workers' deaths are used by him for political point scoring only."
This onslaught by the former nazim has not only caught the MQM off-guard, but also damaged the image of Altaf Hussain and his party very badly. As if it was not enough, on March 7th, Dr Sagheer Ahmed , a former provincial health minister, also criticised Altaf Hussain and left the MQM after being associated with it for 28 years. He joined Mustafa Kamal and Anees Kaimkhani.
Talking to the media, Dr Sagheer said,
"I am here as I am going to stand alongside Anees Kaimkhani and Mustafa Kamal, and will play a positive role in helping Pakistan grow."
"It was not possible for me to subdue my conscience and I salute Kamal and Kaimkhani for speaking the truth."
Then on 10th March, MPA Iftikhar Alam and Waseem Aftab, former coordination committee member, also joined Kamal. They also lashed out at the party's London- based leader Altaf Hussain and said " the allegations against Mr. Hussain having links with Indian intelligence agency RAW were based on facts."
With the joining of these two , the number of MQM dissidents has risen to five, which is very threatening to the party and its leadership, especially since Mustafa Kamal has decided to form a new party.
The MQM has dismissed all allegations levelled against their leader by the former office bearers. The party leaders are suspecting a conspiracy against the MQM and showing their resolve to foil it. They are of the view that the establishment is working on "minus-one formula” which will not be successful as "Altaf Hussain is the solution to all problems and difficulties".
In a statement released on the party's website, the MQM spokesperson claimed that the “establishment” had tried to eliminate the MQM and its founder Altaf Hussain since the party's emergence as the only party representing “mohajirs”.
"This (formation of a new party and Sagheer's inclusion) is a drama staged to eliminate the MQM and is the repetition of the drama staged back in 1992," read the statement.
Many analysts are of the view that the Kamal episode seems pre-planned as the military establishment has decided to get rid of Altaf Hussain by creating another party and leadership that not only eschews violent politics, terrorism and links with India, but also represent the aspirations and hopes of the muhajir community of urban Sindh.
Pakistan' s history tells us that the army establishment has used the MQM for protecting its own partisan interests.
General Zia ul Haq supported the MQM to counter the PPP and the JI in Karachi.
From 1989-91, General Mirza Aslam Beg used the MQM for overthrowing the Benazir Bhutto government and then destabilising the Nawaz Sharif government.
Then, from 1992-1996, the military establishment led by Generals Asif Nawaz, Waheed Kakar and Jahangir Karamat changed the policy and tried to control the MQM by creating the Haqqiqi faction of Afaq and Amir.
But, from 1999 to 2008, General Pervez Musharraf embraced the MQM. He gave it full political help and support to thwart the PPP in Sindh and Karachi. During this decade, the MQM emerged as a terrorist organisation protected by the state.
It is also very notable and interesting that generals who supported and used the MQM were “muhajirs”. They had their own" interventionist political agendas" while the generals who have tried to stop it from violence were not muhajirs and had no interventionist ambitions.
It is also a fact that the present army chief General Raheel Sharif has no political agenda as demonstrated by his restraint during the “Dharna” politics of 2014.
In fact, the army under General Sharif has reversed its pro-Taliban and pro-MQM policies. It has also decided that all anti-state elements will be crushed.
Kamal' s return to Karachi may be a drama, but one cannot deny that the MQM believes in violence. And, now, its five former leaders are accusing Altaf and party of being funded by RAW. These accusations cannot be taken lightly. PTI leader Imran Khan has urged the government to form a judicial commission to probe the allegations levelled against Altaf Hussain. Other PTI leaders are also repeating the same demand.
"Sagheer repeated the same allegations Kaimkhani and Kamal levelled against the MQM. “The people of Karachi are confused about who is telling the truth and this confusion must be removed through a judicial commission," said PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi.
But, Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan has refused to listen to the disgruntled leaders. He has said that "Mustafa Kamal should furnish proof of his allegations against MQM leader Altaf Hussain".
It is very tragic because when the journalist Declan Walsh broke his story in the New York Times about the Axact network's fake degrees, the interior minister immediately ordered an investigation by the Federal Investigation Agency. Here, top MQM leaders are openly accusing Altaf Hussain of indulging in anti- state activities, but Nisar Ali Khan wants proof. He should change his double-standards and unpatriotic attitude. A judicial commission must be set up to investigate these very serious allegations.
There is no doubt the politics of Karachi is based on ethnicity. The MQM has played this card very successfully. Due to this ethnic approach, the MQM has not become a nationwide political party. On the other hand, nationwide political parties like the PML- N, the PTI and the PPP have not been able to break the ethnic politics in Karachi. So, in these circumstances, the MQM can be challenged effectively only by another ethnic-based political party.
Mustafa Kamal's party "can lay the foundation of an ethnic alternative to the MQM."
The PTI is welcoming this situation because Mustafa Kamal has severely criticised the MQM and the PPP. But, the PTI will not be able to take benefit from the new developments in Karachi as its local leadership is not in a position to persuade the MQM members for abandoning the ethnic mindset.
On the other hand, the PPP and PML-N are quietly observing the situation. They would like to see the minus-one formula successful.
The military establishment should try to take this step to its logical end as it cannot, now, afford "any halfway house. This initiative must gather political speed and clout, otherwise it is going to fizzle out in a whimper. In the event, Altaf Hussain could remerge as a stronger leader than before and become a bigger headache for all".
All these developments manifest that Karachi's politics is passing through very interesting times. The MQM is facing a great test and challenge as many disgruntled members of the party will join Mustfa Kamal' s new party in the coming days.
For its part, the MQM should shun its violent politics. It should not brush aside all these very serious allegations by terming them as a conspiracy. Rather, it should answer these allegations and mend its ways, if it wants to survive as a real political party in Pakistan.
Mustafa Kamal has accused Altaf Hussain and his party of links with Indian intelligence agency RAW and of "running gangs of hitmen." He also accused Altaf Hussain of turning innocent children into criminals.
In a speech that lasted nearly two hours, Mustafa Kamal said that "everyone knows Altaf Hussain has links with RAW. After Imran Farooq was murdered in 2010, England’s Scotland Yard found documents from his (Farooq's) house, and started summoning the MQM leadership (present in London) for interviews, including Altaf Hussain, who was grilled by British law enforcement for three consecutive days."
"They asked them (Altaf, Anwar, Tariq Mir) if they had links to India's spy agency, which was refused initially, but Scotland Yard produced documents after which the MQM leaders, including Altaf, confessed to getting support from RAW."
"The workers are unaware of the true situation. Altaf should come clean and tell the workers why he has been receiving funds from India's spy agency."
"Children from respected families have turned into agents and criminals, working against the state of Pakistan."
"Thousands have made sacrifices to secure a dozen individuals including Altaf Hussain and his aides."
Referring to the MQM supremo as “Altaf sahib” as compared to his earlier reverential use of “Altaf Bhai", he said Hussain was often intoxicated while addressing workers, and that his state worsened over time.
"We [Rabita Committee members] used to take responsibility for all his mistakes and actions."
"We sacrificed for Altaf, and did not distinguish between right and wrong, but Altaf does not care about his workers. Party workers' deaths are used by him for political point scoring only."
This onslaught by the former nazim has not only caught the MQM off-guard, but also damaged the image of Altaf Hussain and his party very badly. As if it was not enough, on March 7th, Dr Sagheer Ahmed , a former provincial health minister, also criticised Altaf Hussain and left the MQM after being associated with it for 28 years. He joined Mustafa Kamal and Anees Kaimkhani.
Talking to the media, Dr Sagheer said,
"I am here as I am going to stand alongside Anees Kaimkhani and Mustafa Kamal, and will play a positive role in helping Pakistan grow."
"It was not possible for me to subdue my conscience and I salute Kamal and Kaimkhani for speaking the truth."
Then on 10th March, MPA Iftikhar Alam and Waseem Aftab, former coordination committee member, also joined Kamal. They also lashed out at the party's London- based leader Altaf Hussain and said " the allegations against Mr. Hussain having links with Indian intelligence agency RAW were based on facts."
With the joining of these two , the number of MQM dissidents has risen to five, which is very threatening to the party and its leadership, especially since Mustafa Kamal has decided to form a new party.
The MQM has dismissed all allegations levelled against their leader by the former office bearers. The party leaders are suspecting a conspiracy against the MQM and showing their resolve to foil it. They are of the view that the establishment is working on "minus-one formula” which will not be successful as "Altaf Hussain is the solution to all problems and difficulties".
In a statement released on the party's website, the MQM spokesperson claimed that the “establishment” had tried to eliminate the MQM and its founder Altaf Hussain since the party's emergence as the only party representing “mohajirs”.
"This (formation of a new party and Sagheer's inclusion) is a drama staged to eliminate the MQM and is the repetition of the drama staged back in 1992," read the statement.
Many analysts are of the view that the Kamal episode seems pre-planned as the military establishment has decided to get rid of Altaf Hussain by creating another party and leadership that not only eschews violent politics, terrorism and links with India, but also represent the aspirations and hopes of the muhajir community of urban Sindh.
Pakistan' s history tells us that the army establishment has used the MQM for protecting its own partisan interests.
General Zia ul Haq supported the MQM to counter the PPP and the JI in Karachi.
From 1989-91, General Mirza Aslam Beg used the MQM for overthrowing the Benazir Bhutto government and then destabilising the Nawaz Sharif government.
Then, from 1992-1996, the military establishment led by Generals Asif Nawaz, Waheed Kakar and Jahangir Karamat changed the policy and tried to control the MQM by creating the Haqqiqi faction of Afaq and Amir.
But, from 1999 to 2008, General Pervez Musharraf embraced the MQM. He gave it full political help and support to thwart the PPP in Sindh and Karachi. During this decade, the MQM emerged as a terrorist organisation protected by the state.
It is also very notable and interesting that generals who supported and used the MQM were “muhajirs”. They had their own" interventionist political agendas" while the generals who have tried to stop it from violence were not muhajirs and had no interventionist ambitions.
It is also a fact that the present army chief General Raheel Sharif has no political agenda as demonstrated by his restraint during the “Dharna” politics of 2014.
In fact, the army under General Sharif has reversed its pro-Taliban and pro-MQM policies. It has also decided that all anti-state elements will be crushed.
Kamal' s return to Karachi may be a drama, but one cannot deny that the MQM believes in violence. And, now, its five former leaders are accusing Altaf and party of being funded by RAW. These accusations cannot be taken lightly. PTI leader Imran Khan has urged the government to form a judicial commission to probe the allegations levelled against Altaf Hussain. Other PTI leaders are also repeating the same demand.
"Sagheer repeated the same allegations Kaimkhani and Kamal levelled against the MQM. “The people of Karachi are confused about who is telling the truth and this confusion must be removed through a judicial commission," said PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi.
But, Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan has refused to listen to the disgruntled leaders. He has said that "Mustafa Kamal should furnish proof of his allegations against MQM leader Altaf Hussain".
It is very tragic because when the journalist Declan Walsh broke his story in the New York Times about the Axact network's fake degrees, the interior minister immediately ordered an investigation by the Federal Investigation Agency. Here, top MQM leaders are openly accusing Altaf Hussain of indulging in anti- state activities, but Nisar Ali Khan wants proof. He should change his double-standards and unpatriotic attitude. A judicial commission must be set up to investigate these very serious allegations.
There is no doubt the politics of Karachi is based on ethnicity. The MQM has played this card very successfully. Due to this ethnic approach, the MQM has not become a nationwide political party. On the other hand, nationwide political parties like the PML- N, the PTI and the PPP have not been able to break the ethnic politics in Karachi. So, in these circumstances, the MQM can be challenged effectively only by another ethnic-based political party.
Mustafa Kamal's party "can lay the foundation of an ethnic alternative to the MQM."
The PTI is welcoming this situation because Mustafa Kamal has severely criticised the MQM and the PPP. But, the PTI will not be able to take benefit from the new developments in Karachi as its local leadership is not in a position to persuade the MQM members for abandoning the ethnic mindset.
On the other hand, the PPP and PML-N are quietly observing the situation. They would like to see the minus-one formula successful.
The military establishment should try to take this step to its logical end as it cannot, now, afford "any halfway house. This initiative must gather political speed and clout, otherwise it is going to fizzle out in a whimper. In the event, Altaf Hussain could remerge as a stronger leader than before and become a bigger headache for all".
All these developments manifest that Karachi's politics is passing through very interesting times. The MQM is facing a great test and challenge as many disgruntled members of the party will join Mustfa Kamal' s new party in the coming days.
For its part, the MQM should shun its violent politics. It should not brush aside all these very serious allegations by terming them as a conspiracy. Rather, it should answer these allegations and mend its ways, if it wants to survive as a real political party in Pakistan.
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