HYDERABAD, Sept 7: Senior Sindh Minister Nisar Khuhro said on Saturday that the PPP did not support the MQM’s demand for the army’s deployment in Karachi because it believed that a democratic government could restore peace in the city through civilian institutions.

Talking to journalists after attending a seminar on “dropout in education of Sindh — causes and remedies” here, the PPP leader said complete peace could not be restored in Karachi when the MQM was part of the ruling coalition in Sindh. He termed the MQM’s demand strange and said if it was demanding an operation after remaining in power for five years, then there were civilian institutions which had worked well in the past and could do the same now.

Mr Khuhro said that prime ministers had been visiting Karachi in the past in order to bring peace to the city and such visits would continue in future. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Karachi and his press conference were also part of such efforts, he added.

The minister said that PPP never bowed down before terrorists when it was leading the coalition government at the centre.