KARACHI: Terming the Sindh government a “security risk”, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan on Wednesday demanded that the federal government impose governor’s rule in Sindh for the sake of “solidarity and integrity” of Pakistan.

The demand was made by senior party leader Amir Khan during a press conference held at the MQM-P’s temporary headquarters in Bahadurabad.

The press conference was called following last week’s disclosure of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) that claimed to have unearthed a racket in the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) involved in illegal issuance of “four million fake” computerised national identity cards (CNICs) in Sindh.

He said that not only government jobs were stolen from locals on the basis of fake domiciles but it had now been proven that millions of names were inserted illegally in the voters’ lists in Sindh.

‘Four million bogus voters’

He said it had been established in the FIA probe that four million bogus voters were part of electoral rolls in Sindh and with their help a number of influentials got elected in the province.

Mr Khan said that four million bogus voters could have affected and manipulated the election on 40 National Assembly seats and it appeared that the Pakistan Peoples Party fraudulently got power in the province by putting the solidarity and integrity of the country at stake. “It is clear now that their [PPP] mandate was fake,” he remarked.

“Corrupt and anti-state elements are ruling the province. They managed to get fake employment in Nadra-Sindh [for] their own people, who in turn made four million illegal CNICs including those of RAW and Afghan intelligence agents.” While seeking the imposition of governor’s rule in Sindh, the MQM-P leader demanded that these four million bogus votes be removed from the voters’ lists.

Mr Khan was of the view that extreme measure like governor’s rule could be exercised if there was a threat to the country’s integrity.

He asked the federal government to take measures in the upcoming population census to foil plots to include fake names in it as well as to exclude bogus votes.

He praised the FIA for its efforts to unearth a big conspiracy against the country and demanded that real culprits be unmasked and given immediate exemplary punishment.

The MQM leader also demanded that all four million bogus CNICs be blocked in the light of the FIA probe’s findings.

Political administrators

Mr Khan said the MQM-P favoured a review of various parts of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution.

He said that electoral rolls were manipulated in an organised manner in Sindh during the past 10-15 years.

Commenting on reports that the PPP government was going to appoint Murtaza Wahab as Karachi administrator, Mr Khan said that the appointment of political administrators was a form of rigging.

He said a political administrator would favour his own party.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2021