A conspiracy against the MQM and I was hatched on August 22, 2016. The military establishment did it. It was a usual unlawful act of the military establishment to weaken the MQM through its proxies under the same but fraud MQM.
#YoumeAzmeWafa22Aug
Despite these continued notorious acts, the MQM is intact of which I am the undisputed Supremo. The people know it, and embrace it cordially. The chain of atrocities which the military establishment launched on August 22, 2016 is still in full swing. They had already chalked out and finalized the required preparations for that operation. Many MQM leaders, Coordination Committee members, and assembly members had been bought off by offering them various incentives. On the morning of August 23, 2016, they held a press conference and announced disassociation from me, the founder and leader of the movement. They sold their conscience and integrity. However, the devoted workers remained steadfast. Those who refused to sell their loyalty were betrayed by traitors and forcibly disappeared. Many of them were extra-judicially murdered, and their mutilated bodies were dumped in deserted areas. I advised my loyal workers to hold the traitors accountable for the blood of these martyred comrades. On August 22, 2016, my residence Nine Zero, the Khursheed Begum Memorial Secretariat, and all zonal, sector, and unit offices of MQM in Karachi, Hyderabad, and across Sindh were sealed, and they have never been returned to the loyal workers. All of this happened in the presence of the man I had trusted and appointed as Governor of Sindh who stabbed me in the back and worked against the movement and the Muhajir nation instead of working for their interests. Despite all restrictions, every worker of the movement in Pakistan and overseas observes the "Day of Loyalty and Commitment." Even in a suffocating environment, the mothers, sisters, and daughters of the movement held Quran recitations for the martyrs and continued their bond of loyalty with their brother Altaf. I wholeheartedly salute and pay tribute to the convener and deputy convener of the Rabita Committee, former members, international secretariat aides, comrades who stood guard at my home, and every worker and office-bearer of the units in Pakistan and overseas. The conspiracy hatched against Altaf Hussain and his MQM on August 22, 2016, is today, nine years later, being repeated against Imran Khan. Conspiracies and injustices against me, my movement, and my family have been carried out for decades. In 1979, I was arrested, and General Zia Ul Haque’s summary military court sentenced me to 9 months in prison and 5 lashes. Twice more under Zia’s rule, I was arrested and subjected to mental and physical torture. Attempts were made on my life, military operations were launched against my party, and thousands of my workers were killed extra-judicially. No one raised their voice against these atrocities. When I could not be broken by oppression, my elder brother Nasir Hussain and my nephew Arif Hussain were arrested in 1995, tortured for three days, and then shot dead in Gadap, Karachi. My brother-in-law Aslam Ibrahimi was arrested from his home, tortured in Adiala Jail, and left half-dead. He, too, was later martyred. Due to repeated raids, my other brothers and sisters were forced to leave their homes and go abroad. My family was persecuted for years, yet everyone remained silent. I wish
and other political and religious leaders had spoken out against these injustices then Imran Khan’s family would not be facing the same today. In September 2015, the establishment, through the Lahore High Court, banned the broadcast and publication of my speeches and statements. Everyone remained silent against this unconstitutional and illegal ban.
In 2018, Imran Khan became Prime Minister, yet he did not lift this ban. After being removed from power, Imran Khan survived an assassination attempt, but was later arrested and jailed. When even imprisonment did not break him, his family was targeted to break his spirit. Yesterday, when the Supreme Court granted Imran Khan bail and PTI leaders and workers were celebrating, the authorities raided the house of his sister Aleema Khan and arrested her nephew Shahrez. The next day, after leaving court, another nephew, Shehryar, was also arrested. I say again that if, when my family was being persecuted, Imran Khan and other leaders had raised their voices, Imran Khan’s family would not be targeted today. On the other hand, when Imran Khan was attacked, arrested, and his party victimized, I, Altaf Hussain, was the only one across the country who openly raised his voice against this oppression, and I continue to do so. Likewise, when Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz faced injustice, I raised my voice for them too. Wherever oppression occurs, Altaf Hussain raises his voice. As long as I breathe, I will continue to protest against oppression because Allah has made my heart such that I cannot bear to see anyone oppressed. I strongly condemn the arrest of the sons of Ms Aleema Khan and demand their immediate release. PTI workers trust Ms Aleema Khan more than their leaders. They now understand that their leaders have been enjoying ministerial perks and assembly memberships for two years, while workers are being sentenced to 10 years in prison; yet the
leadership remains silent. When Aleema Khan’s house was raided and her sons arrested, the PTI leadership should have announced protests or sit-ins, but they stayed silent. I urge the PTI workers not to look towards these self-serving leaders but to take the movement into their own hands. Today, the Baloch are being called traitors, but they are not traitors. They are fighting for their legitimate rights. The real traitors are those generals who brand Baloch as traitors, persecute them, and push them against the wall.
Altaf Hussain.
London.
304th public address on TikTok on August 22, 2025.
https://youtu.be/le82FRppDv4?si=ZYoccsON3UHYv9h0
|