KARACHI: An official of Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, on Tuesday night filed a complaint against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s media cell in-charge and others for launching a ‘venomous propaganda’ against the force, prompting the MQM to react angrily over the ‘false’ case.

The complaint filed at the Azizabad police station was later turned into an FIR, which was registered against MQM leader Aminul Haq on a complaint lodged by Rangers DSR Mohammed Ishaq of Sachal Rangers at Gulberg, said officials on Wednesday.

A police officer said the case was lodged under Sections 499 (defamation), 502 (sale of printed or engraved substance containing defamatory matter) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code and Sections 6M (involves serious coercion or intimidation of a public servant in order to force him to discharge or to refrain from discharging his lawful duties) and 7H (the act of terrorism falls under clauses (h) to (n) of sub-section (2) of section 6 shall be punishable on conviction to imprisonment of not less than five year and not more than but may extend to imprisonment for life and with fine) of 7-ATA of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997.

The complainant said in the FIR MQM media cell in-charge Aminul Haq while sitting at Nine-Zero, the MQM headquarters in Azizabad, was ‘deliberately spreading poisonous propaganda against the Pakistan Rangers officials’.

‘We don’t need to do such things or make videos or songs’

He accused the MQM leader of uploading such video clips onto social media and sending to the print and electronic media on a regular basis, which ‘patriotic Pakistani could not think of doing so’.

“The MQM media cell in-charge Aminul Haq was hindering Rangers operational actions through propaganda,” he said.

The Rangers official said that he and his accomplices at the media cell wanted to demoralise the Rangers jawans and officers fighting against anti-state elements, grenade attackers, targeted killers, extortionists, terrorists and kidnappers.

“Recently, the MQM (A) media cell had prepared a video and uploaded it onto social media containing a song (tarana) against DG Rangers Maj Gen Bilal Akbar, DG ISI Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar, Corps Commander Karachi Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar and army chief Gen Raheel Sharif that reads: “jis nay MQM ko rulaya hay ab hum us dushman ko rulaingay,” according to the complaint.

Furthermore, there were unaccountable, objectionable material, news being aired that were an open conspiracy against national security and institutions and was a move to prevent the Rangers and other law enforcement agencies from fighting against terrorists in Karachi, which came within the ambit of the 7-ATA, it said.

MQM reaction

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement has slammed Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, for having lodged what it called a false case against its coordination committee member Amin-ul-Haq for an ‘unknown’ anti-Rangers video uploaded on social media.

In a statement issued from London on Wednesday, MQM coordination committee convener Nadeem Nusrat said: “The social media video for which the Rangers have lodged a case against Amin-ul-Haq has nothing to do with the MQM, its information department or Amin-ul-Haq.”

Terming the Rangers action mala fide and ridiculous, he said the paramilitary force lodged the case without even conducting any preliminary investigation to ascertain the origin of the said video.

He said the MQM was a responsible organisation and it openly criticised wrong steps of any institution. “We don’t need to do such things or make videos or songs.”

Mr Nusrat said the Sindh Rangers were a responsible institution and its authorities should avoid levelling baseless and unfounded allegations.

He demanded that the ‘false’ case against Amin-ul-Haq be withdrawn forthwith. He also asked the authorities to stop lodging ‘false’ cases and implicating MQM workers and office-bearers in every incident.

Protest demo at ECP offices today

Waseem Akhtar, the MQM’s nominee for the office of Karachi mayor, announced on Wednesday that all elected local government representatives would hold a demonstration outside the offices of the Election Commission of Pakistan on Thursday (today) in protest over the postponement of the long-delayed elections of mayor, deputy mayor and chairman of district municipal corporations.

Speaking at a press conference with elected representatives belonging to the MQM as well as the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf at the Karachi Press Club, he said that similar protests would also be held in Hyderabad, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah.

He appealed to the Supreme Court to take notice of the postponement of the elections and order the authorities to hold mayoral elections forthwith.

He criticised the ECP for postponing the mayoral elections on the pretext of the retirement of its four members. He questioned the competence of the ECP and said that it appeared that the federal and provincial authorities as well as people in the establishment were unwilling to allow the elected representatives of the people of Sindh to function.

He said the MQM had decided that the delay in the completion of local government institutions was a public issue and not a political matter so it would contact all political parties for evolving a consensus and joint line of action.

Published in Dawn, June 16th, 2016