KARACHI: Criticising the federal interior ministry for inciting hatred and bias, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain Friday appealed to the chief justice of Pakistan to order a probe unmasking elements behind the ‘hoax’ of Muhajir Republican Army, DawnNews reported.

Speaking to members of MQM’s Rabita (Coordination) Committee here, he urged Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry to order a sincere and impartial investigation to expose elements behind spreading the “bizarre fantasy” regarding the presence of the said militant outfit in Karachi.

In a report, submitted to the Supreme Court in Karachi unrest implementation case by Attorney General Munir A. Malik on Thursday, the federal government had revealed presence of “Muhajir Republican Army” in the port city. The report urged the judiciary to identify those behind the militant outfit and suggest legal course of action against them.

However, during the National Assembly session earlier on Friday, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that the government was retracting the mention of the militant group in the report. He claimed that the report was submitted to the Supreme Court without his permission and that he would apologise to the court for it.

MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar had also showed his concerns over the fiasco late on Thursday night.

The MQM chief said a similar ‘hoax’ of “Jinnahpur” surfaced 20 years ago when the party was targeted through different operations carried out by the civil and military forces.

Calling the revelation as ‘severe and disgusting hoax,’ he called for strict action against string pullers of the militant outfit, if there were any. “Otherwise, legal action should be taken against officials of the interior ministry for spreading hatred and bias and for hatching a conspiracy to defame the patriotic masses of the country,” Hussain demanded.

The MQM chief directed Rabita Committee members to also raise their voice against the conspiracy in the national and provincial legislature. He also advised them to challenge the allegations in the apex court after consulting constitutional and legal experts.