MQM amends constitution to remove Altaf’s name

London leaders reject minus-one formula

MUTTAHIDA Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Farooq Sattar on Thursday announced that the party has amended its constitution and has removed the sections that bind Karachi Rabita Committee to seek guidance from Altaf Hussain.

Sattar claimed that the party’s Pakistan chapter decision was unanimous and London-based Nadeem Nusrat would remain the party’s convener.

“We have removed Section 9B from the party constitution, which termed party founder Altaf Hussain’s endorsement mandatory in all decisions taken by the Rabita Committee,” he said, adding that his claims should not be taken with a pinch of salt.

He reiterated that the party was independent from London. “Our policies and decisions are independent and MQM London has nothing to do with them,” he added.

Sattar also announced inclusion of four new leaders namely Sardar Ahmad, Khalid Maqbool, Khuwaja Sohail Mansoor, and Rauf Siddiqui in the Karachi Rabita Committee.

He urged the government to take notice of what he called “illegal seal of party headquarters Nine Zero”.

"However, we still stand firm with our demand about the missing persons. We also demand release of the innocent MQM workers who were unnecessarily arrested on August 22, despite the fact that they were not in the videos and had nothing to do with the speeches that Altaf Hussain made that day," he said. He added that party offices were illegally demolished and sealed.

Farooq Sattar said that the party believed it was being persecuted despite having rejected those who had raised anti-Pakistan slogans.

MQM leader Khawaja Izharul Hassan received a phone call during the conference after which he started taking notes. Hassan then passed on the notes to Sattar, who stopped his address to read the notes. Hassan then tore the paper as soon as the notes were read by Sattar.

MQM had announced dissociation from Altaf Hussain’s statements and had his name from the party flag. The party had also pledged on Wednesday to table a resolution against Altaf Hussain in the National Assembly.

KAMAL REJECTS SATTAR’S CLAIMS: Commenting on Farooq Sattar’s press conference, rival party leader Mustafa Kamal claimed that his experience with MQM suggests that party does not follow its own constitution when it came to Altaf Hussain.

“Altaf’s word is MQM’s constitution,” Kamal said, adding that Altaf Hussain was still “operational” and he feared for Sattar’s life.