ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan on Wednesday said that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) should not punish the people of Pakistan for an action carried out in London by the British government, DawnNews reported.

He said that the party should hold protests over the arrest of MQM chief Altaf Hussain in the United Kingdom instead.

Khan said the UK had arrested one of its citizens on charges of money-laundering, adding that it made no sense for the MQM to stage its protests in Karachi.

The PTI chief said he fully understood “the anguish of the MQM workers” but asserted that it was “absolutely unjustified for the MQM to bring Karachi to a standstill and disrupt the lives of the people” of the city when it is the British authorities who have taken legal action against a British citizen.

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He further said that the MQM had no reason to paralyse day to day life in Karachi, adding that the Sindh government should not take part in MQM's protests and should instead work on managing the situation.

He said that the Sindh government should focus on “ensuring safety of the citizens of Karachi” and making certain that “their lives and the businesses of the city are not brought to a standstill”.

Khan added that it was “a mockery of governance” that the Sindh government had joined the MQM’s protest.

The MQM chief was arrested by the British police on Tuesday on suspicion of money-laundering. He was arrested in northwest London where he has been living in self-imposed exile since 1992.

Hussain gained British citizenship in 2002 after leaving Pakistan when a military operation was launched to end ethnic unrest in Karachi.

His residence in London was previously raided on suspicion of money-laundering in 2012 and 2013 by British police.