Musharraf must pay price for Karachi massacre, says Opp

* Opp senators ask Musharraf, govt to quit
* Rabbani says Karachi carnage, killing of Hammad Raza targeted

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: Senators from the combined opposition Monday angrily reacted to Karachi killings, and demanded President Musharraf and the federal and Sindh governments to quit and pave the way for free and fair elections in the country.

Over 25 legislators from the upper house belonging to Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and Balochistan National Party (BNP) earlier boycotted the Senate proceedings to support the opposition’s call for shutter down strike against the killings of political workers by MQM on May 12.

Addressing a joint press conference at the Parliament House, leaders of the opposition parties in Senate vowed that Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Musharraf would have to pay the price for the Karachi massacre.

“The government’s conspiracy will soon be exposed,” they said. They linked the murder of Supreme Court’s Additional Registrar Hammad Raza with Karachi riots and current judicial crisis, and said the murder was aimed at conveying strong message by the perpetrators to the political parties.

Mian Raza Rabbani, leader of the opposition, said that Karachi carnage and killing of Hammad Raza were targeted incidents, which might have strong linkages with the recent statements of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and PML President Shujaat Hussain.

“A week back the PM had hinted at imposing emergency in the country while head of the ruling PML stated that assemblies’ tenure could be extended for another year. The government may take such a decision under the pretext of Karachi carnage,” Rabbani observed.

He said the Sindh PPP would lodge an FIR against the MQM and Sindh government over killings in Karachi.

To another query, he said Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif would return at an appropriate time and both the leaders wanted a consensus democratic federal government.

The opposition parties also condemned attacks on the print and electronic media on May 12. “Callous government and defiant President Musharraf should quit immediately because they want to take Pakistan back to the days of cannibal by carrying out target killings of their own armless countrymen,” Rabbani said.

PML-N’s Ishaq Dar said the MQM had killed 40 innocent people at the behest of the president.

He alleged that the MQM was provided with unlicensed sophisticated weapons to kill political workers and stop the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) from approaching the Sindh High Court. “The Sindh home department had forewarned the federal government regarding a possible direct clash between the MQM and opposition parties, but the government concentrated on PML rally, ignoring the bloodshed in Karachi,” Dar added.

MMA’s Maulana Gul Naseeb said that Musharraf regime had become a symbol failure for the whole nation.

ANP’s Asfandyar Wali Khan said that the country had been made a Gestapo state but democratic forces would not let Musharraf achieve his sinister motives. “General after general heading the country is not acceptable,” he said.

About his telephonic talk with Sindh governor, Khan said that Ishratul Ibad had been clearly asked to talk to the opposition leaders and not to the ANP because those killed in Karachi were not the ANP workers only.

MMA’s Prof Ibrahim branded the MQM as terrorist and fascist political group and said that it would be countered politically.

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