KARACHI: While the Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Monday announced that the party would take up resolutions against PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and PTI chief Imran Khan in the Tuesday assembly session again, the ruling party said the move indicated the MQM had become isolated.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said the purpose of the MQM’s protest in the house was not to seek details of their party worker’s murder investigation rather they wanted to do political scoring by tabling a resolution against PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari in response to the resolution passed in the house a day earlier against Altaf Hussain.

“But we will not allow them to do political scoring,” the chief minister said, adding that whatever the MQM legislators did in the house on Monday was contrary to the laws and norms of the assembly.

The chief minister, who was talking to the media after the Monday assembly session, said he had come back to the assembly after the 10 minutes adjournment to share some details about the murder of MQM worker Mohammad Hashim. But the rumpus in the house meant for political scoring did not allow him to do so, he added.

He questioned as to why the MQM did not lodge any protest when Hashim had been kidnapped on May 5. His wife filed an FIR against unidentified persons on July 28, he said. “Why did the MQM not react then?” asked Mr Shah.

He said he had sought only a day to provide details about Hashim case to the house but the MQM had its own objectives to make the noisy protests.

Senior Irrigation Minister Nisar Khuhro said the MQM had become isolated but it did not mean that the party demonstrate its frustration on the floor of the house.

MQM legislators had trampled all norms of the assembly and adopted attitude of ruffians for which leader of opposition Khwaja Izharul Hasan had to extend apology later when the house reassembled. Yet the MQM legislators did not change their attitude, he regretted.

Mr Khuhro said the assembly could be run only according to its rules of business, not on anyone’s dictation. He said MQM lawmakers by creating fuss in the house were harming themselves.

Meanwhile, speaking to the media following the Monday session, leader of opposition in the assembly Khwaja Izhar-ul-Hasan said they wanted to bring details of Hashim’s murder in the house but the chief minister acting like a monarch refused to listen. The CM asked his advisers to reject the MQM’s request to allow to speak on the issue, Mr Hasan said.

The opposition leader, who was accompanied by MQM lawmaker Mohammad Azeem Farooqui, said that the party would take up their resolutions against PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and PTI chief Imran Khan in the Sindh Assembly on Tuesday once again.

He said that for the past seven years the PPP ruled oppressively but it would not be tolerated in Sindh any further. If the CM was not prepared to listen to a lawmaker, how he could listen to the cry of the poor, the opposition leader said, adding that their time was over and they would have to pay attention to the people across Sindh.

The lawmakers asked the PPP leadership to tell to the masses who was the owner of the steamer that was carrying wealth and who was the owner of the bungalow that was sealed.

In reply to a question, he said they withdrew their strike call after the Rangers DG assurance through the media about investigation and arrest of the killers of Hashim.

The legislators, however, asked as to why the field of operations of the National Accountability Bureau and Federal Investigation Agency were restricted to Karachi only.

In reply to another question, they said the MQM would raise its voice against anyone who would talk against the armed forces and national institutions. The party would also celebrate Independence Day on Aug 13 and 14 with full enthusiasm, they added.

Published in Dawn August 11th, 2015

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