HYDERABAD: Leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) staged separate power shows in Hyderabad, with workers demonstrating where their support lies.
Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, along with senior MQM-P leaders Dr Farooq Sattar and Ameenul Haq, addressed the media outside the MQM office in Hyderabad. Governor Tessori said that Hyderabad had once again proven it was a stronghold of the MQM-P, as it had been in the past. He said there was no preplanned gathering, corner meeting, or prior preparation for the event, yet workers turned out in large numbers.
He congratulated Zonal Incharge Zafar Siddiqui on the show of strength. He said party workers had demonstrated steadfastness in the past and continued to do so today, adding that they stood with the MQM-P and its election symbol yesterday and today and would continue to do so in the future. “Hyderabad has once again shown that it neither looks to the right nor to the left,” he remarked.
Governor Tessori stated that the MQM-P is a major political party and currently the third-largest party in parliament. Extending greetings on the first Sehri of Ramazan, he prayed that Allah, through the blessings of the holy month, would pull the country out of its crises.
Referring to Hyderabad’s status, he said it is Sindh’s second-largest city, contributes taxes, and hosts industries, yet its grievances have long been ignored. Some talk about Form 45 and others about Form 47, but Hyderabadis have made it clear that they belong to 1947. If anyone strays, the people of Hyderabad know how to set things straight themselves, he said.
He emphasized that the MQM-P is currently under the leadership of Chairman Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, adding that the chairman’s authority would prevail. If someone does not follow the chairman, their opinion will also not be accepted, he said, making an indirect reference to internal party discipline.
Governor Tessori assured the public that the MQM-P would raise their issues in the assemblies and fight for their rights. He said the party had decided not to remain silent anymore, whether on matters related to Article 140-A or provincial autonomy, and urged the public to hold the party accountable if it failed to deliver.
He further stated that the doors of the Governor House remain open to the public 24 hours a day. He said arrangements had been made for Sehri and Iftar for 500,000 people, along with daily distribution of one residential plot and one car. However, he claimed these facilities could not yet be shifted to Hyderabad due to obstacles created by certain elements, whose identities would be disclosed at an appropriate time.
Addressing the media, Dr Farooq Sattar urged the business community to cooperate with the public during the ongoing inflation and appealed for relief in load-shedding during Sehri and Iftar hours. He strongly criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), saying the MQM-P would not allow the party to escape accountability.
He claimed the Gul Plaza incident would be the final nail in the coffin of the PPP’s 18-year rule. He announced that the MQM-P would become an intervener in the case, and asserted that the next mayors of Karachi and Hyderabad would be from the MQM-P.
Responding to journalists’ questions regarding the MQM-P allegedly being divided into three factions, Governor Tessori did not give a direct answer but reiterated that Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui is the chairman and his authority would prevail.
Tessori’s arrival in Hyderabad was delayed, as he first visited the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar’s shrine in Sehwan, where he offered prayers and laid a chadar. Before and during the governor’s arrival, MQM-P workers were seen gathering at the district office and chanting slogans against another group within the party.
On Tuesday, senior MQM-P leader Anis Ahmed Kaimkhani visited Hyderabad, where he met party workers and leaders and offered Fateha. His sudden arrival at the MQM district office in Bhai Khan Chari led to a large gathering of workers. Qaim Khani was accorded a warm welcome at the Hyderabad Zone Office.
Addressing party officials and workers, he said that PPP’s 18-year rule had devastated Karachi, Hyderabad, and urban Sindh, and that the MQM-P was now launching a practical struggle against the party, with Hyderabad playing a vanguard role. He alleged that PPP had deprived the youth of urban Sindh of employment opportunities and failed to provide government jobs.
He said that while differences of opinion might exist within the MQM-P regarding working methods, there was complete unity on holding the PPP accountable. He announced that a historic protest would be held in Hyderabad against PPP after the Eid.
Kaimkhani reiterated that Hyderabad was, is and would remain a stronghold of the MQM-P, adding that those responsible for destroying the city would now be held accountable. He rejected what he termed fake delimitations used to secure the mayor’s office and declared that Hyderabad’s mayor would be a Haq Parast.
Members of the national and provincial assemblies, including Professor Abdul Aleem Khanzada, Shariq Jamal, Daniyal Ahmed, and Faheem Pattni, along with a large number of district office-bearers and party workers, were present. According to party sources, following Kaimkhani’s visit, MQM-P leaders requested the Sindh governor and other senior leadership to visit Hyderabad within 24 hours.
