KARACHI, Sept 11: The chief of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Altaf Hussain, called for getting rid of extremism and fundamentalism in Pakistan and making it a country which Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had envisioned.

Mr Hussain was speaking via telephone at a seminar titled “The Quaid-i-Azam and today’s Pakistan” organised by the MQM to mark his death anniversary.

Seasoned politician Mairaj Mohammad Khan, journalists Saleem Safi and Mujahid Barelvi, author Mohammad Hanif, scholars Dr Farman Fatehpuri and Khwaja Razi Hyder also spoke on the occasion.

The MQM chief said that he wanted a stable Pakistan where citizens belonging to any religion and sect would be considered equal in the light of the teachings of the founder of Pakistan. Referring to the Quaid-i-Azam's historic speech of Aug 11, 1947, Mr Hussain said that the founder of the nation was a liberal, progressive and secular leader and had wanted people of all religions and sects were treated equally.

“Anyone who wants to make Pakistan a country for only one sect should know that then it would not be Jinnah's Pakistan,” he said.“Pakistan is not only for Muslims, but also for Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Ahmadis, Parsis and all other non-Muslims. It is for people from all schools of thought — including Sunnis, Shias, Deobandis, Barelvis, Ahle Hadith and others."

Mr Hussain said that he had known what sect the Quaid-i-Azam belonged to for a long time but only spoke about it after the brutal murders of innocent Pakistanis who were being killed only because they were Shia.

"Some people say that the Quaid-i-Azam had never revealed his sect... He had no need to reveal it because he did not believe in sectarianism.”

Mr Hussain said that it was his firm belief that the Quaid-i-Azam was murdered and did not die of natural causes. “The establishment had never liked that the Quaid-i-Azam spoke the truth.” He asked why the ambulance which was sent to the airport to bring Mr Jinnah from the airport was not in a perfect working condition? "The Quaid-i-Azam was the Governor General of the country but why was there no backup vehicle with his ambulance?” he asked. “Why did the ambulance not have sufficient fuel?"

Mr Hussain regretted that some people tried to portray the Quaid-i-Azam's image as that of a religious extremist despite the fact that he was a liberal and secular leader who believed in religious tolerance and sectarian harmony. He reminded everyone that the Quaid’s first cabinet had included an Ahmadi and a Hindu.

He called on the elements who said that Hindus, Sikhs and the Ahmadis had no right to live in Pakistan should imagine if the same happened to them in the West.

Referring to the reports published by the Human Rights Watch and the BBC on sectarian violence and the inclusion of hate content against non-Muslims in school syllabus, Mr Hussain said that history was being mutilated to foment extremism in the country. —Staff Reporter