PESHAWAR: President of Quami Wattan Party and former federal minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao on Thursday said that the Awami National Party (ANP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) wanted an operation to take place in Karachi on the pretext of the notion that the Taliban were present in the city, DawnNews reported.

Speaking at a press conference in Peshawar, the former interior minister claimed that there was no Taliban presence in Karachi, adding that, the issue in the city was one of law and order.

Sherpao further said that certain individuals and groups were using the name of the Taliban to take extortion money.

He added that the ANP and the MQM were using the Taliban’s name to play politics.

Sherpao moreover demanded of the government to carry out a transparent census in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), adding that, the government should take steps for the resettlement of the 800,000 people who had been displaced in the wake of military operations in the tribal areas.

On the re-election of US President Barack Obama, the former minister said that it would not bring any significant change with regards to the issues of peace and security in the region.