Farooq Sattar dubs talk on Article 149 a "feeler to create false hope"

KARACHI: Farooq Sattar has called the talk on Article 149-(IV) a “feeler to create a false hope”, he was talking to media outside the court during hearing of a case, ARY News reported on Saturday.

Farooq Sattar was commenting on a proposal by Federal Law Minister Farogh Naseem who had recently hinted at invoking Article 149 (IV) of the constitution in Karachi for the immediate resolution of the city’s issues.

“Like the circulatory debt of the power sector, garbage in Karachi is also circulatory,” disgruntled MQM-P former leader said.

“I am seeing a head on confrontation between federal government and the province,” he further said.

“The people of Karachi would not gain anything from it. They will become like football ( in confrontation)”, he said.

The law minister’s statement was vehemently criticized by the People’s Party leaders, which is ruling party in Sindh.

Pakistan People’s Party Senator Raza Rabbani on Friday said that the constitution only allows the federal government to advise provincial authorities under Article 149 while implementing it is discretion of the province.

The talk of invoking Article 149 in Karachi would have grave consequences, he warned.

Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani earlier said the federal government could not invoke Article 149 (4) referring circumstances in Karachi.

The authority of the provincial government could not be set aside with misuse of the powers delegated under the constitution, Saeed Ghani warned while commenting on the federal law minister’s statement.

The province will reply according to the constitution, if received a letter from the federal government, Ghani said.

Meanwhile, Pir Pagara, a heavyweight in Sindh’s politics, expressed surprise over the statement of law minister Farogh Naseem, and said that the federal minister (instead of it) should demand for bringing back the federal capital to Karachi.