HYDERABAD: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain Saturday said overseas Pakistanis should be given the right to contest elections and to vote, praising them send foreign exchange to run the country.

Addressing a gathering of notables of the city at a 'dawat-e-haleem' over telephone from London, Hussain demanded that the ban that bars them to contest in elections should be immediately lifted.

He congratulated people of the city on announcement of establishment of a university by Malik Riaz and expressed his gratitude to Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah for allotting 50 acres of land for the same.

Business magnate Malik Riaz had announced establishment of universities in Hyderabad and Karachi in private sector a week back to meet longstanding demand of MQM and people of Hyderabad where no general university, an engineering or medical college exists.

Altaf Hussain reiterated his resolve as to why Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf is being singled out for treason trial under Article 6 under directive of a former Chief Justice of Pakistan, who he said himself had not only took oath under PCO but also gave him the right to rule the country for three years.

“The judiciary had given him [Musharraf] the license to rule the country for three years,” he said and added that Musharraf had violated the Constitution on Oct 12, 1999 as well and then imposed emergency on Nov 3, 2007.

But, he said, he is being tried for Nov 3, 20007 and no one is talking about Oct 12, 1999 toppling of civilian government of Nawaz Sharif.

The MQM chief said he should be allowed to hold a sit-in outside parliament and he would hold an open court against those who have looted this country and have made fortunes. He said that he is all alone ready to argue the case on Article 6 in Supreme Court Karachi registry where jurists from across world should be called to hear him.

Hussain said that he would readily accept the sentence if verdict went against him but it if goes in his favour all those responsible for Article 6 violation should be hanged.

“When he [Musharraf] imposed emergency on Nov 3, 2007 entire army hierarchy of that time was on board with him,” he said.

The MQM chief also blamed PML-N and PPP leadership for violating Charter of Democracy (CoD) in which the two sides had resolved not to meet army leadership surreptitiously but Chaudhry Nisar, Shahbaz Sharif and PPP leaders kept meeting army leaders.

He directed his party's legislators to file questions in National Assembly to seek details as to how much loan is obtained by present government from China, US, World Bank and IMF although the government had claimed that it would break the begging bowl.

Altaf Hussain maintained that no one has staged protest against a statement of John Kerry in which he had described the Army as binding force of Pakistan. “When I spoke of Constitutional role for Army I was dubbed agent of armed forces,” he said, adding that the country needs a leader like Kamal Ataturk.