KARACHI: The Mutta­hida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan and the Pak Sarzameen Party — the two breakaway factions of the Altaf Hussain-led MQM — have strongly condemned the London-based leader’s recent statement in which he asked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to “speak out for the rights of Mohajirs”.

Indian media carried a London-datelined report that quoted Mr Hussain as telling PM Modi that “our forefathers made a big mistake and migrated to Pakistan, but we were born here, and never accepted as Pakistani or sons of the soil”.

“Mr Prime Minister you should have raised your voice against the atrocities, discrimination and brutality of Pakistani establishment against Urdu-speaking Mohajirs, your own people in Karachi, Pakistan,” he said, complaining that Mr Modi had raised his voice for the people of Balochistan but not for “your own people who lived in India for centuries”.

Muttahida’s coordination committee condemns ‘every nefarious design’ to cast doubt on Mohajirs’ patriotism

However, none of the Indian media reports or the said statement of the MQM founder was posted on the party’s website.

The coordination committee of the MQM-P — which had ousted Mr Hussain about seven months ago following his Aug 22 anti-Pakistan speech — took strong exception to his statement and declared that “no individual or group has a right to plot against millions of patriotic Mohajirs by calling the Indian prime minister for help”.

“Our ancestors had played a pivotal role in the Pakistan movement and then proudly adopted Pakistan as their country. The people of Pakistan, especially the Mohajirs, are well aware that Narendra Modi is known as the Butcher of Gujarat whose anti-Muslim policies are in front of everyone,” it said in a statement issued in the small hours of Saturday.

Without naming Mr Hussain, the MQM-P condemned “every nefarious design” to cast a doubt on the patriotism of the Mohajirs and pledged to foil every conspiracy by anti-state elements against the solidarity of Pakistan.

Similarly, PSP leader Raza Haroon condemned the MQM founder’s statement and said that the Mohajir community had already rejected him for his “anti-Pakistan activities”, as he was an agent of Indian intelligence agency RAW.

In a statement issued on Saturday, he demanded that action be taken against Mr Hussain under Article 6 (high treason) of the Constitution in the light of a resolution adopted unanimously by the Sindh Assembly.

He said that all patriotic persons should come on the same page and help each other to defeat RAW in Karachi.

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2017