April 10, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 3, 1429

HYDERABAD, April 9: Jamiat Ulema-I-Islam (Fazlur Rehman) leader Senator Dr Khalid Mahmood Soomro has said that Qazi Hussain Ahmed has left the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal whereas other member parties of the alliance have backed the JUI stance to take part in the general elections.

He said the Jamaat-i-Islami not only boycotted the polls but went door to door, asking people not to vote for the JUI-F.

Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday, Dr Soomro, who is also the general secretary of the JUI Sindh chapter, said if the Jamiat wants to rejoin the alliance Mr Qazi Hussain Ahmed must seek apology from nation and from religious parties.

He said the JUI had held talks with the Pakistan People’s Party before joining the coalition in centre and in Balochistan.

“We put up 17 demands to them which when agreed we joined the coalition,” he said and added that these demands include running the country according to the Quran and Sunnah; to accept the recommendations of Council of Islamic Ideology, granting autonomy to provinces by handing all subjects to provinces except defence, currency and foreign affairs; not to follow the US agenda on war on terror which JUI considers a genocide of Muslims.

He said they also demanded no action against seminaries and to replace corrupt police officers with honest ones and to provide a share in overseas jobs to Sindhis.

To a question about the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, the JUI leader said they have reservations against the MQM.

He claimed the MQM’s boycott on manhandling of Mr Arbab Rahim was not in sympathy with him but it was a tactic of blackmailing through which they wanted to increase pressure on the PPP to get more ministries.

He claimed the incidents of manhandling of Arbab and former federal minister Sher Afgan seem to be pre-planned by the presidency.

He apprehended that President Pervez Musharraf might be seeking refuge behind such incidents to re-impose emergency.

Allama Qari Sher Afzal, Maulana Taj Mohammad Nahyoon, Azam Jehangiri and others were present on the occasion.—PPI