Altaf offers unconditional support to army
07 July, 2014
KARACHI: Paying rich tributes to the armymen sacrificing their lives to fight terrorism, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief, Altaf Hussain, said on Sunday that they were offering their unconditional support to the armed forces.
He was addressing a mammoth rally at the Jinnah Park in Karachi via video link from London.The MQM chief dedicated the rally to the martyred soldiers and said they had selflessly sacrificed their lives for the country while weeding out terrorists from North Waziristan.
Except for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), all the political parties, including Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People's Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q), Pakistan Awami League (PAL), etc, endorsed the MQM's viewpoint expressing solidarity with the armed forces. Workers of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) were also present in large numbers, raising their party flags.
Altaf Hussain said: "We stand with our courageous forces and we salute them." After that, the whole gathering rose to salute the Pak forces. The uniqueness of the rally could be gauged from the fact that both the opposition and ruling parties were together on the one-point agenda to support the army in eliminating terrorism from the country.
"Today's massive show proves that the entire nation is with the armed forces and stands behind them in the time of crisis," said Hussain. He congratulated the armed forces for their successes adding that the nation prays for the armed forces' success at every platform. He said first the terrorists would be eliminated and then the feudal lords and chieftains would be tackled as they had plundered the nation's wealth and transferred it to other countries. He said all such elements would be told to pack up and leave for the country where they had piled up their loot.
"If terrorists want to impose the Sharia, they should (do it) while remaining in the parameters of the Constitution. There are other religious parties too and are functioning under their manifestos and constitutions. The terrorists should express their views and ideologies but should not impose their own form of Sharia through guns, stick and violence on others," he said.
"They want to destroy the country while sowing the seeds of sectarian, ethnic and religious hatred. There is no need of any (outside) enemy," he said. He said the armed forces Jawans are powerful, brave and courageous and they know how to safeguard the borders of the country.
Giving the roadmap of the MQM, Hussain said when it comes to power, it will eliminate terrorists, feudal lords and corrupt rulers in addition to putting in place a system of accountability. The MQM, he said, would give power to honest people who do not take bribe or kickbacks.
He also called for an end to the dual education system, adding that his party would abolish the class culture and acquire a uniformed educational policy. Karo-Kari and honour killing would be abolished and a "national integrity society" would be established, which the world would follow, he said.
The MQM chief said that his party wanted to establish a society where everyone has equal rights and religious freedom. He said Ahmedis would also have equal rights and could perform their religious rituals freely in the rule of the MQM. He stressed that the MQM wants a real democratic set-up in the country.
He said all help should be provided to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) who have left North Waziristan in the aftermath of the operation against the terrorists. He also requested the people to donate one time meal to the IDPs. Hussain said former President Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf should not be punished alone. He pressed that Musharraf's abettors should also be tried.
He said the Article 6 has sections A, B and C, demanding that trial should be conducted against all those who were involved in the plane hijacking case of 1999. An army colony should be built and Gen (retd) Pervaiz Kiyani should be incarcerated next to Musharraf's house.
He reiterated that a revolution is in the offing and the people would see world-shattering changes in the country. Altaf shared a lighter moment with Sheikh Rashid, saying both of them had been to jails. He said he had seen the Pakistani jails and now he had also seen the British lock-up. He said Rashid's time will come when he would be given a stick and handcuffs to get rid of corrupt politicians.
Hussain termed it an historic rally in favour of the army engaged in the Zarb-e-Azb operation in North Waziristan. He also termed it the biggest-ever Iftar for the participants in the history.
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, PML-N leader Elahi Bux Somroo, PPP provincial minister Robina Qaimkhani, APML leader Ahmed Raza Kasuri, Miraj Muhammad Khan, BNP SVP Ahsan Shah, PML-Q leader Haleem Adil Sheikh, PML-F leader Kamran Tissori, PAT leader Khurram Nawaz Gundapur, representatives of Hindu and Christian communities, Mangal Sherma and Jaey Salik, also spoke on the occasion.
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the MQM stood behind the army and it was undoubtedly the symbol of a great nation. He said the army fought on various fronts but the entire nation prayed for them. He said the problems of IDPs had to be tackled with great wisdom otherwise the army could not win the battle.
Elahi Bux Somroo said Altaf Hussain did a great job to organise such a huge rally in favour of the army. He said he had prayed for elimination of terrorism from the country.
Robina Qaimkhani said they saluted the Pak army and also the MQM for organising the gathering for a noble cause. She said they had suffered from terrorism. She said soldiers and officers who sacrificed their lives for the country should be paid tributes.
Ahmed Raza Kasuri said he would like to thank Altaf Hussain for arranging this great gathering to express solidarity with the army. He said the army soldiers needed a morale boost for fighting against terrorism. He recited a poem written by his grandfather in 1951 which praised the Pakistan Army.
Miraj Muhammad Khan said the terrorists kept working on to damage Pakistan's name and integrity. He said terrorism took over 40,000 lives of innocent Pakistanis. He appreciated Altaf Hussain for supporting the army which was fighting against the terrorists.
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