IN an emotional statement on Thursday, MQM chief Altaf Hussain spoke out against the “false allegations” and “negative propaganda” being spread about him, advising party cadres to foil the “conspiracy”. The MQM supremo’s comments appear to have been prompted by a recent BBC report, broadcast in the UK, in which two suspects believed to be involved in Muttahida leader Dr Imran Farooq’s 2010 murder in London have been named. Also on Thursday, the MQM held a press conference in Karachi in which party leaders slammed the UK broadcaster’s programme, saying that the suspects had no links with the Muttahida. The party has been claiming that London’s Metropolitan Police was “harassing” Altaf Hussain. The London-based MQM leader has reportedly been questioned by British authorities in a number of cases, including Dr Farooq’s murder probe as well as a money-laundering investigation. It is not known what the exact nature of the alleged harassment of the MQM leader is. But if the Met is indeed badgering Mr Hussain in a fashion beyond what the law permits, that is unacceptable and the MQM chief could take up the matter in a UK court.

At the same time, while the party’s well within its rights to criticise the BBC programme if it doesn’t agree with the latter’s content, our understanding is that all the show did was to name the suspects in Dr Farooq’s murder case. Nowhere was it said that these individuals were MQM activists. If the Muttahida is interested in unveiling Dr Farooq’s killers — as the party insists it is — then it should welcome any breakthrough in the investigation. After all, Dr Farooq was amongst the MQM’s top-tier leaders. His brutal murder has been seen as a conspiracy against the MQM and the party should fully support the British authorities in unravelling this mystery. The investigation must continue till it reaches its logical conclusion; while the MQM’s concerns about the harassment of its leader should be addressed, the focus must remain on bringing Dr Farooq’s killers to justice.