The APC, which was held at the Karachi Press Club, was attended by leaders of the Jamaat-i-Islami, Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Pakistan Peoples Party, Pakistan Muslim League-N, Awami National Party, Tehreek-i-Insaf, MQM (Haqiqui), Punjabi Pakhtoon Ittehad and over a scores of other small political parties and groups.
In one of the resolutions, adopted on the occasion, the APC demanded that all those areas, which had been made ‘No go areas’ by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement be opened so that all political parties could work there freely.
The APC also demanded that a tribunal of Supreme Court judges be appointed to investigate all incidents of murders of ulema and activists of religious and political parties, bomb blasts, and use of government machinery against opponents.
The government should resign to free the machinery, particularly the administration and police, form the clutches of the said group so that free and transparent elections could be held, the APC demanded.
Earlier, highlighting the objectives of the APC, the ST leaders, Maulana Iftikhar Bhatti and Maulana Akram Qadri said the way political, religious leaders and activists were being killed from the last few months and attacks being carried out on imam bargahs and mosques, it indicated that a particular group was after peace in the city, and wanted to have a rule of terrorism.
“The recent killing of our workers, burning of offices and cars, are the chain of similar incidents in which activists of the Jamaat-i-Islami, and PPP leaders Munawwar Suhrawardi and Abdullah Murad were gunned down,” they pointed out.
They said the situation highlighted the need for all political and religious parties to get united on one platform against terrorism.
Participants of the conference included Dr Mairajul Huda Siddiqui, Hafiz Muhammad Taqui, Maulana Omar Sadiq, Dr Pervez Mehmood, Saleem Zia, Tariq Khan, Raheel Iqbal, Shabbir Abu Talib, Shahi Syed, Rasool Bux Palijo, Sohail Anjum, Malik Sikandar Awan, Allama Hasan Turabi, Khan Amanullah Khan, and others.