Interestingly, Mr Sattar sent his resignation to the president by fax, although under the Constitution resignations of cabinet members are sent to the prime minister. – File Photo

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: The breach between two main coalition partners — Pakistan People’s Party and Muttahida Qaumi Movement — widened further after the Minister for Overseas Pakistanis, Farooq Sattar of the MQM, sent his ‘symbolic’ resignation to President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday, indicating his party’s intention to part ways with the government.

The Minister for Ports and Shipping, Babar Ghauri, who also belongs to the MQM, is in Oman as a member of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s delegation. He is likely to resign after his return.

Interestingly, Mr Sattar sent his resignation to the president by fax, although under the Constitution resignations of cabinet members are sent to the prime minister.

Zahid Mehmood, a leader of the MQM from Punjab, confirmed that Mr Sattar had sent his resignation to the president. “We know the centre of power is the president. That is why the resignation has been sent to Mr Zardari.”

Presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar neither confirmed nor denied that the presidency had received the resignation, but said that efforts were under way to appease the “annoyed partner”. “We will soon overcome the misunderstanding between the PPP and MQM.”

The MQM had on Monday night decided to quit the coalition government at the centre in protest against the PPP’s reluctance to openly disown a provincial minister’s diatribe against the former. However, it decided to continue sitting on the treasury benches and supporting the government for the cause of democracy.

Sindh Home Minister Dr Zulfikar Mirza had in a speech on Dec 13 held the MQM responsible for target killings in Karachi. The Muttahida asked the PPP leadership to clarify whether the minister’s statement was his personal opinion or reflected the party’s thinking.

President Zardari, who is in Karachi, asked Interior Minister Rehman Malik to keep in touch with MQM leaders and try to resolve the crisis.

Mr Malik told reporters in Karachi that the MQM-PPP alliance would continue.

The MQM has two ministers, two parliamentary secretaries and three chairmen of standing committees in the federal government.

Earlier this month the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-F, a coalition partner of the PPP, also left the federal government in protest against the sacking of its minister.

The PPP-led government will lose majority in the National Assembly if 25 MQM legislators decide to sit on the opposition benches.

MQM chief Altaf Hussain called JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and discussed with him the political situation in the country.

According to an MQM leader, Farooq Sattar said in the resignation that his party had joined the government to support it in solving people’s problems, but the PPP had never taken the MQM into confidence on important national issues. Besides, he said, PPP leaders had persistently insulted and maligned the MQM. According to sources, the Muttahida had sought removal of Zulfiqar Mirza.

The tone of Dr Mirza softened on Tuesday when he said in a statement that he was ready to step down, if required, for the sake of democracy.

During a meeting with an MQM delegation last week, President Zardari had said his party believed in reconciliation and respected all coalition partners.

“What some people think is a political crisis will be no more than a storm in a tea cup and will be resolved amicably,” Farhatullah Babar said on Tuesday. He said the MQM delegation had expressed confidence in the president and had left a resolution of its concerns to him.

He dismissed as “misleading and baseless” a statement attributed to PPP leader Syed Khurshid Shah by some private news channels that MQM had set new conditions for rejoining the federal government and these were being considered.

Rehman Malik, who held a meeting with the Sindh chief minister and officials of law-enforcement agencies on Tuesday, said the PPP was trying to address concerns of all coalition partners. He said the PPP and MQM had agreed to a deadline of Dec 31 for addressing the latter’s concerns.

Talking to reporters at the provincial Crisis Management Authority in Karachi, he said the PPP did not want to hurt anyone’s sentiments and assured the MQM that its concerns would be addressed.

Referring to his talks with Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad, Mr Malik claimed that there was no deadlock between the PPP and MQM.

He said that JUI-F, MQM and PPP had their own manifestos and “we respect each other’s leadership”.

Mr Malik said that a report pertaining to Benazir Bhutto’s assassination would be presented at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.