KARACHI, May 11: Before the curtain drew on the by-election campaign in the city, MQM chief Altaf Hussain charged the Jamaat-i-Islami of allegedly being involved in the Hyderi mosque bomb explosion in the city.

Speaking to party rallies late on Monday night, Mr Hussain also demanded of the president and the prime minister to impose a ban on the JI because it had opposed the demand for Pakistan.

The MQM chief attacked the religious parties in the MMA for "pushing sectarian unrest and dissension among masses." The MQM chief warned that if the JI did not mend its ways, his workers might loose patience.

He was of the view that the people had lost faith in the religious parties whom he accused of exploiting Islam and not addressing the problems of the people. On the contrary, he claimed that MQM was addressing to their problems and electing people from the middle class.