Farah Adeed |
Syed Mustafa Kamal, the chairman of Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP), rolled up his sleeves to respond Farooq Sattar, the head of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), establishment and some of his critics. Mr. Kamal clearly stated that the establishment was behind the merger of PSP and MQM-P. “Today I want to tell all of Pakistan that, yes, the establishment called us and made us meet Farooq Sattar,” he revealed.
He also alleged Farooq Sattar and his MQM-P of being very close to the establishment. He maintained that it was Farooq Sattar who wanted the merger, not the PSP. He told the nation that when he went to attend the meeting Farooq Sattar was already there. He stated that “when we reached, Sattar was already there and it was on his request that we were called. This did not happen a few hours ago. Sattar and his team have been calling us with help from the establishment for the past eight months”.
He, however, clarified his position and said “I am not an agent [of the establishment]. If I was, I would not leave my senatorship in 2013”.
These questions need careful study of ongoing political debates and controversy within and outside the MQM. There needs to a concrete evidence to establish as to who controls MQM and who rules Karachi?
Mustafa Kamal was also bashing the MQM for evoking identities and exploiting Mohajirs. He said that Mohajirs supported the MQM but “what did Mohajirs get [in return]?”
A new debate on the role of the establishment in Karachi has just started. Those who are critical of the establishment’s policies have taken up Mustafa Kamal’s claims to show the nation as to how it (establishment) engineers politics and backs political parties in the country. Liberal analysts and political commentators see the role of the establishment in politics ‘disgusting’ and the main hurdle in the process of democratization in Pakistan.
Read More: MQM-PSP Merger: Will it last and what does it mean for…
If the role of the establishment in Karachi’s politics is so crucial and detrimental then there are several questions to be raised at the moment. Who has been supporting the MQM’s violent policies in Karachi to maintain its hold? Who was taking money from the traders and businessmen in Karachi? How Mustafa Kamal was able to, or dared to, launch his own party without taking the establishment in confidence? If MQM has always been the establishment’s darling how it (establishment) allowed PSP to go against the MQM? What led to a brief break-up between the establishment and the MQM? What re-united them? Who controls Karachi? Who runs the MQM-P?
These questions need careful study of ongoing political debates and controversy within and outside the MQM. There needs to a concrete evidence to establish as to who controls MQM and who rules Karachi?
At this stage, however, it can be argued that there is some very important role played by the establishment to engineer politics in Karachi. If so, the establishment should also be held responsible for the law and order situation in the city. Karachi had become almost a “no go city” for the students, traders and lay public. Although things are being controlled now yet it needs to be clarified whether the unproven-guilty MQM was really responsible for the unrest or was it backed by someone else?
Politics in Pakistan needs to be done by the people and politicians not by the some hidden hands so that a true democracy may get flourished in Pakistan.
There is also another set of questions as well. Why could the merger not stand long? What motivated Farooq Sattar to come so loud? What was the purpose of the merger? Who was the real target of the failed merger? What will happen next? Will Sattar and his MQM some heavy price for being ‘unruly’ and “ungrateful”? Will the PTI and other political parties gain some popularity in the city or the establishment will have the final say? Who will be the next power holder in Karachi if the MQM gets out?
Read More: Why Mustafa Kamal’s press conference was significant?
It is important to mention that democracy only flourishes when people get the chance to elect their representatives and demand prosperity, employment, and stability. When all politics become a drawing room affair and the fate of the people is determined by some hidden hands, the purpose of politics in a democracy loses its real meaning.
Politics in Pakistan needs to be done by the people and politicians not by the some hidden hands so that a true democracy may get flourished in Pakistan.