MQM-P apprises PM Shehbaz Sharif of reservations in key meeting

ISLAMABAD: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) delegation has met Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and apprised him of party’s reservations, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The MQM-P delegation comprised Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Waseem Akhtar and Faisal Sabzwari, whereas, the meeting was also attended by federal ministers Rana Sanaullah, Khawaja Saad Rafique and Ayaz Sadiq.

Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori apprised PM Shehbaz Sharif about MQM-P’s reservations on different issues including the delimitation in the province, said sources, adding that the political party gave its stance that elections could not be held without proper delimitation, otherwise, it would be ‘injustice’.

The MQM-P leaders complained about the non-implementation of Local Government (LG) Act amendments and Article 140A.

They said that Shehbaz Sharif, Fazlur Rehman and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had acted as guarantors of the political agreement, hence, they should take a concrete decision. They also demanded PM Sharif inform MQM-P leadership at the earliest if PPP was not agreeing to implement the political agreement.

PM Shehbaz Sharif said that MQM-P is an important ally and that the agreement between the Centre and the province will be implemented. “We will not leave Karachi alone. I will discuss this matter with Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari by myself,” assured the premier.

The delegation members said that the political party suffered an unbearable loss due to the non-implementation of the agreement. The MQM-P clarified that it would not be part of the coalition government anymore if the issues of urban Sindh are not addressed.

‘Regretting to back PPP, PML-N’

Yesterday, Waseem Akhtar has said that they are regretting joining hands with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N).

Exiting the government is easier said than done, said Waseem Akhtar.

Talking exclusively to ARY News the MQM-P leader said that winning with 50,000 votes in a constituency with 600,000 voters is not a big deal. MQM-P’s vote bank is being dismantled through unfair delimitations, he added.

He added that all political parties lost the by-polls as only 8% of people voted in Karachi. Has Murataz Wahab delivered in Karachi if MQM-P failed? he questioned.

He added that cases against all other political parties, including the PPP and PML-N, were quashed but their ‘clapping’ cases were not.

Meanwhile, differences are reported to have arisen from MQM-P as Amir Khan was not invited to the party’s ‘important meeting’ at Sindh Governor House, ARY News reported on Monday.

According to details, Governor Sindh Kamran Tessori and MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui summoned an emergency consultative meeting to discuss the agreement signed with Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).