Karachi [Pakistan], January 31 : The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Thursday accused Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari of threatening Karachi's business community during a recent address, Dawn reported.
MQM-P officials demanded that authorities take notice of what they described as a "threat" to the city's traders.
In a press conference, the MQM-P leadership expressed outrage over Bilawal's remarks at a lunch he hosted for Karachi businessmen. The PPP chairman had told the traders that they should come to him with their grievances rather than approaching "other forums."
While addressing the gathering, Bilawal also defended the performance of his party's government, drawing attention to the situation in Karachi before 2008, when the PPP came into power.
However, the MQM-P leadership, particularly Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, viewed Bilawal's comments as an open threat. They argued that the PPP chairman's words were more than just a suggestion; they saw it as an attempt to intimidate traders into supporting the PPP rather than any other political faction, reported Dawn.
Siddiqui highlighted that the MQM-P had tolerated the biased policies of the Sindh government for the sake of democracy, but such remarks were crossing the line. "For the past 15 years, a so-called artificial majority government has been running Sindh under the guise of democracy," he stated.
Siddiqui went on to say that MQM-P was the only representative party for urban areas in Sindh, consistently protesting the injustices faced by the people of Karachi. He noted that, just like the urban population, traders and industrialists had long expressed concerns over the prevailing situation, believing that the PPP would offer apologies and take corrective measures.
However, instead of addressing their grievances, the PPP had resorted to threatening them, a move that the MQM-P found troubling.
Senior MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal also joined in condemning the remarks, stating that the PPP's language was a direct threat to the businessmen. He called on authorities to intervene, emphasising that MQM-P had always stood by Karachi's business community. Kamal added that traders had even raised their concerns with Pakistan's army chief, a move that appeared to have offended certain individuals within the PPP.
Farooq Sattar, another senior MQM-P figure, criticised the PPP for what he described as the "enslavement" of Sindh under the influence of the feudal mindset. He argued that this mentality had seeped into every level of provincial governance, affecting the functioning of institutions, Dawn reported.
The MQM-P reiterated its demand for the implementation of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, which the party believes is essential for the future of Pakistan and the welfare of its urban population, particularly in Karachi.
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