There is no one more dedicated and sincere to Pakistan than us – Altaf Hussain

Hyderabad – 25 December 2004
MQM Founder & Leader Mr Altaf Hussain has stated that the very opponents of the creation of Pakistan and those who collaborated with the British against the Independence Movement are giving sermon to us on Pakistanism and the Two-Nation Theory. There is no need for the prejudiced intellectuals from Punjab, to give us sermon on Pakistanism because our forefathers created this country by sacrificing millions of lives and there is no one more dedicated and sincere to Pakistan than us. Its creators did not disintegrate Pakistan; in fact the same former generals and politicians who conspired to call Bengalis as traitors and today branding us as traitors fragmented it. The people of Sindh have now awakened and will not become subservient. He was expressing these views on Friday, while addressing the Eid Milan Party organised in Hyderabad. A large number of MQM workers, elders and womenfolk of Hyderabad attended this gathering.

Mr Hussain said that our forefathers sacrificed millions of lives, abandoned their homes, graves of their elders and their worldly possessions for the creation of Pakistan. Today, the very opponents of the Pakistan Movement are lecturing the children of the creators of Pakistan on Pakistanism. In 1857, when our ancestors were fighting the War of Independence against the British in the Subcontinent – those who were against the War of Independence, “informers” against the freedom fighters, assisted in their arrests and execution and committing treachery are today lecturing us on Pakistanism and the Two-Nation Theory. They have become the Champions of the Two-Nation Theory. Mr Hussain said that Hindus stood shoulder to shoulder with our forefathers during the 1857 War of Independence. As a result of this united struggle, British were forced to retreat but the people of West Punjab colluded with the British and the war was lost. Furthermore, when the British were unable to recruit people from India to conquer the Subcontinent and even the people of East Punjab refused to join them – it was the people of West Punjab, i.e. today’s Pakistani Punjab, sided with the British to foil the War of Independence. Citing an incident during the World War I, Mr Hussain said that when the British Army reached Mecca in Saudi Arabia, it was ordered to open fire on the holy Khana-e-Ka’aba. The British Army personnel including the Hindus and Sikhs of East Punjab refused to accept this order but to appease their masters, the Muslim army personnel belonging to West Punjab without apprehension obeyed the order and open fire upon the Holy Ka’aba. Today, they are defining what Islam is.

He said that what kind of joke is this that the people, who were traitors and allies of British forces against the struggle of independence, have become champions of patriotism and Pakistanism and the history is being distorted in a way that the children of the creators of Pakistan are being declared traitors. Mr. Altaf Hussain said that when he raised factual question on two-nation theory, the prejudiced intellectuals of Punjab are declaring that Altaf Hussain has opposed the two-nation theory. He said that it is also strange that the very people, who had opposed the two-nation theory, are teaching us that what is the two-nation theory? He said that the two-nation theory was that Hindus and Muslims are separate nations, their religion, way of living and society is different from each other and they cannot live together anymore. As Hindus are in majority and Muslims are in minority and Muslims will become slaves of Hindu majority after the independence of the sub continent, therefore, there should be a separate homeland for the Muslims, where they can live with liberty. Mr. Altaf Hussain said that today, this is said that the two nation theory was not for the Muslims of entire India but it was for only four provinces of today’s Pakistan. He raised a question that according to the two-nation theory, were the Muslims of minority areas not Muslims? Were only Muslims from the majority areas were Muslims? He said that it is totally a different point that Pakistan was supposed to be created, only in the areas, where Muslims were in majority but is it right definition of the two nation theory that Pakistan will be only for the people who live in the areas where Pakistan will be created? Has the two nation theory been not negated by saying that Pakistan was for only the Muslims of majority areas?  Have the Muslims of the Muslim minority areas of the Sub-Continent been not betrayed on the name of two nation theory? He asked that the two nation theory was dishonoured by him or those who are misguiding the nation and have become its advocates today? Mr. Altaf Hussain said that the Jamaat-e-Islami and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Hind (India) of Fazlur Rehman had opposed the creation of Pakistan and Jamaat-e-Islami had declared Quaid-e-Azam a Kafir-e-Azam (the great dis-believer) and no Pakistan to the Pakistan. But this is a joke that Jamaat-e-Islami and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, who had opposed the creation of Pakistan, have become the champions of Pakistan and two-nation theory. He said that he fought the case of Pakistan at an international conference in India, where he spoke of people of Kashmir, Palestine and Iraq. At the same time, being son of the soil of Sindh, he presented the case of Sindh as well. Was it a sin? He said that the prejudiced intellectuals of Punjab are saying that Altaf Hussain had gone to India for the cause of Greater India but when the Chief Minister of Punjab went to India and kissed the doorsteps of a Gurdwara (Sikh temple), it was said by the same intellectuals of Punjab that a great job is been done and the separated brothers have met each other today, the linguistic and cultural relations have bonded again as the culture of both East and West Punjab was the same. He said that he started his trip to India by praying at the shrine of Hazrat Khawajah Nizamuddin Auliyah (RA) in New Delhi and there he visited the shrine of Hazrat Khawajah Moin Uddin Chishti (RA) in Ajmer and prayed for the success of his struggle. He said that he was sure that all the conspirators to crush MQM will, finish themselves but the MQM will not finish. He said that the people who created it did not dismember Pakistan but those former Army Generals and politicians, who are distributing the certificates of patriotism and treason today, dismembered it. He told to the prejudiced intellectuals of Punjab to not teach us the lessons of Pakistanism as we know this better, because Pakistan was created by our forefathers and they saw the brutal killings of their children, for the sake of Pakistan and our forefathers had crossed rivers of blood and fire for the creation of Pakistan. No one can love Pakistan more than we do. He said that the history of Pakistan is being distorted and the Nation is taught the distorted history of Pakistan. He said that it is a historic fact that in the 2 elections held before partition, Muslim League lost in Punjab. Sindh was the only province, where the assembly passed the resolution in favour of the creation of Pakistan, which was tabled by late G. M. Syed, who was later declared a traitor. Mr. Altaf Hussain further said that in 1946 elections, Congress announced that if they were in power, they would abolish the feudal system. At this announcement, all the feudal lords belonging to congress shifted their allegiances to Muslim League overnight. That is how Muslim League won in Punjab but due to Lotacracy (floor crossing), Unionist party formed the government in Punjab instead of the Muslim League. No one protested against this and the members of the Unionist Party were not declared traitors and they were not blamed for opposing the two-nation theory. These British loyalists today are labelling the people of Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP as traitors just because they are demanding their due rights. He said that it is impossible that people who are issuing certificate of treason can strangulate the voice of poor people on the basis of their military power, because the oppressed masses are awakened and they are determined not to accept the slavery at any cost. Mentioning the problem of Khokhrapar border, Mr. Altaf Hussain said that if the people of Sindh want to go to India to meet their separated family members, they first have to go to Islamabad to get visas and then proceed to Lahore by train to go to India via Wahgah border, where on the pretext of security check, they have to give heavy bribes, they are harassed and intimidated. Therefore, while on his tour to India, he had talked to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Foreign Minister Natwar Singh, Congress President Ms. Sonia Gandhi and other Indian leaders on the topic of people of Sindh wanting to travel to India, who face numerous problems and hardships. Therefore, it is imperative that visa office in Karachi and Khokhrapar border should be opened. He said that he had convinced the Indian leaders and they are ready to open the visa office in Karachi and the Khokhrapar border. This would help the people of Sindh in saving their time and money; it would also eliminate most hardships of the journey. Not only that, the opening of the border would also encourage opening of hotels and shops in the environs, which would facilitate in providing job to thousands of people Sindh. He said that this decision is in the interest of the people of Sindh but those so called nationalists, who were on the payroll of the establishment are raising hue and cry that if the Khokhrapar border was opened, than, lots of Muslims of India would come and settle in Sindh. Mr. Altaf Hussain said that if Indian Muslims wanted to come to Sindh to get settled down here, can’t they come to Sindh through Wahgah? He said, this is all baseless propaganda, while the reality is that Indian Muslims don’t want to come and settle in Pakistan because they say that why should they settle in such a place where their innocent relatives were being killed and considered as terrorists. He said that the so called nationalists are trying to create division amongst Urdu speaking Sindhis and Sindhi speaking Sindhis through baseless and negative propaganda, but both Urdu speaking Sindhis and Sindhi speaking Sindhis have understood well the conspiracies and they will not fight with each other anymore and will attain the rights of Sindh. Mr. Altaf Hussain said that today, deliberately questions are raised that we have abandoned the word Mohajir. He said that the word Mohajir would remain with us as long as we live. Late GM Syed also migrated from Arab but his life and death were attached to Sindh. We also migrated from India but now, our life and death is for the soil of Sindh. We drink its water, we eat its corps and we get buried here after death. The coffins and boxes of our dead bodies are not sent to other provinces. He said, no conspiracy to divide Sindhi speaking Sindhis and Urdu speaking Sindhis shall succeed as the awakened educated, middle and lower middle class people of Sindh, including mothers, sisters, young men and elders are joining Muttahida and the time will come when all people of Sindh will unite under the banner of Muttahida and raise their voice in unison for the rights of Sindh.