PESHAWAR, Aug 29: The Awami National Party, a partner in the PPP-led coalition government, has urged the Supreme Court hearing a suo motu case on Karachi killings to summon former Sindh home minister Dr Zulfikar Mirza to hear his viewpoints on the situation.

Dr Mirza has levelled serious allegations against Interior Minister Rehman Malik and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and its chief and blamed them for the bloodshed in the country’s commercial hub.

“Dr Mirza has made some serious disclosures which need to be investigated thoroughly,” ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan said at a press conference here on Monday. He was accompanied by Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti and senior leaders of the party.

He said every Pakistani should assess the Karachi situation with reference to what happened on May 12, 2007. Now is time to identify and address the root cause of the problem. “Since the apex court has already taken notice of the Karachi situation, it is an ideal time that it looks into the matter right from May 12 because we believe that the day was a turning point in the Karachi situation.”

He said Dr Mirza did not level ordinary allegations. There should be an investigation. He should be given an opportunity to share the official record he had with the SC so that things got cleared.

“We are very much concerned about the MQM chief’s remarks concerning bloodshed of Pakhtuns, as citied by Dr Mirza. It is time for the MQM leadership to come up with a clarification on this particular point for the satisfaction of the Pakhtun nation,” Mr Khan said.

He called for an across-the-board indiscriminate operation to get Karachi cleared of weapons. “We are in favour of an operation in Karachi and that is the reason we did not object when it was started from Pakhtun-dominated areas. However, we will monitor it closely. So far we don’t have any reservation.”

About the extension of Political Parties Order to tribal areas, the ANP chief said his party’s demand was that political parties should be allowed to operate in the region because there was a vacuum that was largely filled by militants. “Tribal areas should be brought to the mainstream politics after getting their opinion about the system they want.”

Answering a question about the cross-border militant attacks in Chitral and Dir, Wali Khan said the ANP condemned such incidents. “Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have improved over the past two months, but some invisible hands are trying to destabilise them. We have asked both the governments not to let anybody use their soil against each other and to respect international laws.”

He supported the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s stance on arrears of net hydel profit and its de-capping and said it would be a violation of the Constitution if the province’s demands were not met. He said his party would continue its struggle for the province’s rights.