KARACHI: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Interior Minister Rehman Malik separately called MQM chief Altaf Hussain in London on Sunday and inquired after his health amid media reports that the PPP and MQM were again coming closer and the latter would soon rejoin the government.

According to an MQM statement issued in London, Mr Hussain expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Gilani for his phone call and said that with prayers of well-wishers, political leaders like you and the nation, he had fully recovered and would soon resume political activities.

He expressed the hope that “your (the prime minister’s) efforts to promote democracy and for stability of democratic institutions will bear positive results and we will all come together to flourish democracy”.

Mr Hussain asked about the health and wellbeing of the prime minister and members of his family and conveyed his best wishes for them.

Mr Gilani greeted Mr Hussain over his recovery and said that MQM was a political reality, a people’s force and the government respected its mandate.

The prime minister said the government believed in the policy of national reconciliation and was holding talks with all political forces.

“We will continue to serve the country and the nation along with democratic forces,” the prime minister said.