LONDON: MQM sup­remo Altaf Hussain appe­ared in a UK High Court on Tuesday and Wednesday as part of a two-day hearing in his appeal against the MQM-P in a case related to London properties. The court heard arguments from both sides and reserved its verdict, which is expected this week.

Last year, the MQM-P had triumphed over Mr Hussain when the court said that seven London properties valued at about GBP10 million were the possession of the MQM-P.

The MQM-P, represented by Information Technology Minister Aminul Haque, was declared to be the beneficiaries of the trusts and therefore of the properties.

The trial pivoted on the ownership of these properties and saw Mr Hussain battle it out with party factions and ex-loyalists over who was the party’s true leader and therefore a beneficiary of seven assets.

The MQM had split into two factions: MQM-Lon­don and MQM-Pakistan, in August 2016, after a Mr Hussain’s spe­ech triggered violence in Karachi.

In March last year, the judge found that it was not established that the 2015 MQM constitution was adopted by the MQM-P. Instead, it was the April 2016 constitution which was adopted by MQM-P.

Mr Hussain filed an app­eal in June 2023 against the order of ICC Judge Jones.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2024