Isolation for Altaf Hussain: Another miscalculated game plan

[Ehtesham Anwar]

 

By Ehtesham Anwar

 

It is perhaps another miscalculated game plan from the Pakistani Establishment (civilian bureaucracy and army elite) against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) to enforce ‘Minus-One’ formula and forcefully separated founder and leader of Altaf Hussain, one says, has definite mandate among Urdu-speaking or Muhajir community in the country, especially urban Sindh. The August 22, 2016 episode was undoubtedly an unfortunate and unacceptable saga and might have been avoided but matter of the fact that it had happened and created chaos in the country, especially in the Muhajir community that said to be maligned for the last four decades in the name of rural and urban quota system initially implemented by the then PPP’s prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto for twenty years but continued till date because it gave an open space to the feudal elite of Sindh to manipulate the other communal entities living in the province that created a dichotomy between Sindhi-speaking and other communal dwellers.

 

Come to the point, the miscalculation that may bring some grave consequences because MQM founder Altaf Hussain had been maligned and separated from the country’s leadership and the disconnection may also give Hussain an opportunity to make his all out efforts to do what he may have wanted to do but MQM country’s leadership caused to stop his all adventures and threatened Altaf Hussain in the name of army operation against his party and workers but an alienated Hussain may give some tough time to the Pakistan’s authorities as some voices gradually started to rise in favour of MQM’s claim of being suppressed by the Pakistani Establishment, either true or not but has been claimed.

 

It should clearly be noted that MQM’s Altaf Hussain is not Nawab Akbar Khan Bughti living in the hilly range of Balochistan whom one can kill as easily as killing a bug in the drawing room sofa but here the scenario is quite unfavourable to do such feat because Hussain is a British citizen and under the protection of British government had already received London’s Metropolitan Police’s clearance from all charges levelled against him by the Pakistan government and they also rejected all claims to declare him a threat to Pakistan, while another dent was shocked Chaudhry Nisar led campaign when Interpol denied issuing ‘Red Warrant’ against MQM founder Altaf Hussain.

 

It is quite incomprehensible that if the Establishment can devise an accommodating policy for Taliban terrorists by calling them ‘Good Taliban’ why not then Altaf Hussain be given a chance to show his commitment to the country as he continuously claims to be Pakistani despite the hate speech of August 22, 2016 and it is not commendable to stick with that incident because such incidents might have some serious background issues to redress. The government is responsible for providing all necessities to its masses and if unable to do so, has no right to suppress rights of the people, especially under the prejudicial approaches.

 

The most recent step taken by MQM founder Altaf Hussain was to select two new members for the party’s Coordination Committee from two different continents one from South Africa and other from America that may also boost the morale of the workers living in those countries. While the experts pleading not to make MQM like ‘Khalisa-Tehreek’ for Pakistan and it would have no good for anyone because anything that hurts country’s integrity caused harm to all either directly or indirectly involved in the process.

 

Some senior analysts in Pakistani media continuously suggesting the authorities to resolve the issue accordingly because any such situations that may deprive any community caused serious aftermath for everyone, in fact it is time to rid off all egos and should go for political reconciliation with all players and give some equal opportunity to bring them into the main stream politics that engages them enough to think anything else but any attempt to polarise a community that believes to be manipulated by the so-called ‘Son of Soil,’ can bring some unwanted results at the end and definitely nobody wants it.