MQM EMPHATICALLY AND CATEGORICALLY DENIES THE ALLEGATIONS BY PRIME MINISTER NAWAZ SHARIF

SUCH IRRESPONSIBLE STATEMENTS BY PRIME MINISTER ARE DESPICABLE AND DESERVE HIGHEST CONDEMNATION:

CENTRAL CO-ORDINATION COMMITTEE OF THE MQM:

28 October 1998

The Central Co-ordination Committee of the MQM (Muttahida Quami Movement) has strongly and categorically condemned the malicious attempt by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to divisedly implicate the MQM in the murder case of Hakim Saeed. The Co-ordination Committee has summoned an urgent meeting of the party to lay out future strategy.

In a press statement issued today, the MQM Central Co-ordination Committee said that the charges levelled against the MQM were unfounded, baseless and manufactured and had no likeness with the reality. The Committee categorically denied such charges and also strongly condemned them.

The Committee firmly asserted that the manner in which the Prime Minister had attempted to implicate the MQM workers, members of Assemblies and Nine Zero (central Office of the MQM) on the basis of reports by State Agencies and forcibly extracted confessional statements by the arrested in State custody deserved highest condemnation.

The Committee said that the Prime Minister being at such an important position should not have delivered such irresponsible statement based on information collected at the police lock-up, CIA Centre and by other investigating agencies till such time those charges would have been proved by a court of law.

The Committee said that the Prime Minister had referred to a fabricated confessional statement of a person whom the officials had already murdered in custody and what proof had then left that Fasih had ever given any such statement.

The Co-ordination Committee of the MQM said that the Prime Minister by believing the reports of the Government Agencies had declared that Fasih had made startling revelations about his involvement in the murder of Hakim Saeed. The Co-ordination Committee asked that if Fasih was involved in murder and if he had confessed his involvement then why was he murdered in custody? Why he was not produced in court with proof and evidence? The Committee stressed that the real need of the time was that the Prime Minister should have taken immediate notice of the inhuman torture upon Fasih Ahmed and his murder in State custody. The PM should have taken immediate actions against those law enforcement personnel who were involved in the custodial murder of Fasih Ahmed. Contrary to that, the PM had declared the innocent as murderer and had maligned the image of the MQM.

The manner in which the Prime Minister had believed the reports of Agencies and had accused Fasih Ahmed in Hakim Saeed's murder case, had rendered it beyond doubt that the PM was himself involved in Fasih Ahmed's murder.

The Co-ordination Committee further said that the Prime Minister had also declared Amirullah as a prime accuse in Hakim Saeed's murder. While, on the other hand, Amirullah's sister; Qamer Talat, after having met her brother in custody, had sent a telegram on 23 October, 98, addressed to the Prime Minister and had clearly expressed her fear that her brother's life was in danger and he was being tortured and forced to confess the murder of Hakim Saeed. Later, Mother and sister of Amirullah, in the evening of 23 October, 98, in a hurriedly called press conference had told the respected journalists about the details of torture and had appealed to the PM that Amirullah was innocent and his live should be saved. But the Prime Minister instead of paying heed at the appeal of the mother and sister allowed infliction of even brutal and inhuman torture upon Amirullah in custody and implicated him in the murder case of Hakim Saeed on the basis of a forcibly taken confessional statement.

The Co-ordination Committee emphasised that the statements taken in the custody of police and the charges levelled by the Police on someone could not be of any legal consequence until they are tested and proved in the court of law. The Central Co-ordination Committee reminded the Prime Minister that the Agencies on whose report he had relied upon and had maligned the third largest political party of the country, the MQM, had in 1992, accused the murdered innocent villagers of Tando Bahawal as Bandits. Those Agencies had also informed the PM that huge arms and ammunition were also recovered. The PM had visited the Tando Bahawal village and applauded to the Army Personnel who had carried out that Operation. But when that incident was probed independently, it was proved that those villagers were innocent and they were murdered on the basis of personal animosity. The Central Co-ordination Committee said that during the current tenure of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, more than 300 MQM workers and sympathisers had been callously murdered. As a routine many office bearers and workers were murdered in a day. But neither any killer had so far been arrested nor the Prime Minister had addressed any press conference in that regard. The Committee asked that whether the arrest of those killers was not the responsibility of the Prime Minister? The Central Co-ordination Committee added that without any verification of such charges and by accusing the MQM workers and implicating the Nine Zero through such unfounded, fabricated and provocative statements the Prime Minister had demolished the sanctity of his position. The Prime Minister had also devastated the sentiments of thousands of people who held great respect for Nine Zero. The Co-ordination Committee further said that such malicious charge against the MQM had depicted vendetta of Prime Minister against the MQM for not supporting his self-serving Shariat Bill. The Co-ordination Committee said that the Prime Minister had also adversely damaged the reputation of the MQM nationally and internationally, the Committee added. Moreover, the Committee said, that the hatred and prejudicial thoughts of the Prime Minister against the MQM had also been exposed through such actions. The Co-ordination Committee said that time would prove that what political blunder Prime Minister had committed by accusing the MQM through provocative and maligning charges and solely, relying upon the reports of Agencies.