LONDON, Dec 3: Incensed by Sunday’s meeting between a team of religious scholars and Pakistan Muslim League president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain over the women’s rights bill recently signed into law by the president, the Muttahida Quami Movement decided to hold a countrywide protest on Tuesday over the ruling party’s decision to keep its coalition partner out of the loop.

Earlier, MQM convener Dr Imran Farooq criticised Mr Hussain for holding talks with religious scholars over the law without so much as consulting its major coalition partner.

A press statement issued by the MQM secretariat from London quotes convener Dr Imran Farooq as saying that the PML has not altered its policy of ignoring its “strong coalition partner”.

“Therefore, the MQM coordination committee, which has been supporting the government on important and sensitive issues, has unanimously decided that on important issues including the Protection of Women Bill, the PML can adopt their own stance and the MQM will be free to adopt and maintain their own stance and express their viewpoint to the public,” says the press statement.