KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) PIB faction leader Farooq Sattar on Thursday said that he is ready to forget all the allegations leveled against him by party’s Bahadurabad faction in the “larger interest” of the party, ARY News reported.
Speaking exclusively to ARY News, Sattar said that the rival factions’ understanding for a joint rally in Liaquatabad (scheduled for May 5) is not only limited to the rally but can further bring them closer for greater purposes.
Sattar, who refused to be addressed as MQM-P chief or MQM-P Convener, maintained that he has taken a giant leap and is still ready to go an extra mile to keep MQM-P united.
“This May 5 rally is just an opportunity (for reconciliation), a milestone in a journey to achieve a greater goal,” said Sattar.
About the allegations leveled against him by Bahadurabad faction leader Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, he said that he, as a statesman and a veteran politician, is ready to forget them in the larger interest of the party.
‘No room for militancy’
He maintained that one of his greatest achievements after he took over as MQM-P chief was to remove the militancy element from MQM-P.
“We have removed this (militancy) element and if someone tries to introduce this culture (of violence) again, we will throw him out,” said Sattar.
About what brought him and Siddiqui on one page, the MQM-P leader said that “people of Karachi” and “loyal voters and workers” of the party were the only force behind this “reconciliation process.
MQM-P faction leaders Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and Farooq Sattar on Wednesday night announced to hold a joint rally in Liaquatabad on May 5, Saturday. The two leaders praised each other and promised a befitting response to rival parties but did not hint upon reunion or a merger of the two factions.
The announcement is seen as a response to Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who held an electoral rally in the same area on April 29 and strongly criticised MQM-P.
Bilawal not only accused MQM-P of terrorism but also termed them ‘Mustaqil Qaumi Museebat’. His remarks evoked a strong response from both the factions of MQM-P with leaders speeding up efforts for reconciliation between the groups led by Sattar and Siddiqui.
