May 12 suspect confesses to have affiliation with MQM, reveals JIT report

In a confessional video, the suspect Kashif Qadir admitted he belonged to MQM and the later part of his video statement disclosed how he used to get orders to kill from top Muttahida leadership.

Officials said, Qadir was a member of MQM’s society sector and had gunned down at least four people on Baloch Colony Bridge and near Finance and Trade Centre (FTC) building pertaining to the May 12 massacre.

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The suspect said he used to get target killing orders from senior MQM leaders including Nusrat Nadeem, party’s mayoral nominee for Karachi Waseem Akhtar, Hammad Siddiqui and Farooq Saleem.

According to the JIT report, Qadir also exposed that he killed lawyers in Tahir Plaza in the year 2008 and added that MQM’s Nusrat Nadeem actually gave him the task of killing Afaq Ahmed’s lawyer, Sohail Anjum.

The suspect also said he was behind the killing of Advocate Waheed Hussain in Tariq Road area of the metropolis, said the JIT.

Qadir in the confessional video said, he also killed at least six workers of Sunni Tehreek on the orders of Hammad Siddiqui.

He said in the JIT report, since his father was in the construction business, repeated calls for extortion money from MQM forced him to join the party.

MQM’s reaction

As expected, in reaction to the Qadir’s video confession, MQM has denied all the allegations levelled against the party and its leadership.

Kashif Qadir’s video statement is bogus and a part of the ongoing media trial against MQM said a party spokesperson.

Also Read: Debate over MQM’s leader May 12 confessions continues

In a statement released by MQM on Sunday, the spokesperson said Qadir was picked up by Rangers on August 4 and alleged that he was subjected to brutal torture before making a false confessional statement.

It said, as publicised in the video statement, MQM’s Nadeem Nusrat had never been involved in any terror incidents and termed the claim as false.

The May 12 tragedy was one of the grimmest incidents in the history of Karachi when on the arrival of the then Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Chaudhry at least 40 people were killed and more than 90 wounded in armed clashes between workers of different political parties.

The opposition parties since then have been blaming MQM for indulging in the armed conflict and carrying out the killings.