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| India-Pakistan |
| MQM leaders receiving 'extortion letters' from Taliban |
| 2014-10-14 |
| [DAWN] Militants of the Pak Taliban have been demanding extortion money from at least 11 key members of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement ...English: United National Movement, generally known as MQM, is the 3rd largest political party and the largest secular political party in Pakistain with particular strength in Sindh. From 1992 to 1999, the MQM was the target of the Pak Army's Operation Cleanup leaving thousands of urdu speaking civilians dead... (MQM) in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... , the party revealed on Monday. Speaking to news hounds, MQM big shot Farooq Sattar said that party leaders have been receiving threatening letters from the banned outfit in the recent past, asking them to immediately pay up extortion money or face dire consequences. Among the leaders said to have received the 'extortion letters' are Farooq Sattar, Haider Abbas Rizvi, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Nasreen Jalil, Babar Ghauri, and Abdul Rasheed Godil. "Our leaders have also been receiving threats over telephone and SMS. They have been threatened to pay up to Rs1.5 million within one week otherwise they will be targeted along with their families," Sattar told news hounds at a presser. "We've been warned that we will be punished by death if we seek help from security agencies," he said. The MQM says it is being warned for its ideological stance against the krazed killers. The last letter was received on Sept 15, a copy of which was attached to a letter the party wrote to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... informing him of the situation. Ghauri said MQM had received threats in Karachi as well as London, where the party's chief Altaf Hussain has been living in self-imposed exile for the past two decades. Pakistain's commercial hub Karachi is considered a political stronghold of the MQM, which draws its majority support from the Urdu-speaking population of the port city. The party has for years claimed that the Taliban and other hard boy snuffies have increased their foothold in Karachi, with Sattar saying earlier this year that the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) now controls up to 25 per cent of the city. The party has been the target of several bomb and gun attacks by Talibs in the past, with at least three MQM leaders killed in such attacks Last year, the banned outfit vowed to target the MQM ‐ along with the Pakistain People's Party (PPP) and the Awami National Party founded by Abdul Wali Khan in 1986. Part of the PPP-led cabinet 2008-13. The ANP is considered left wing, advocating for secularism, democratic socialism, public sector government, and economic egalitarianism.... (ANP) ‐ for its secular ideology, badly affecting the party's campaign for the May 2013 general elections. MQM chief Altaf Hussain has also been a vocal critic of peace talks with Talibs. |
| Posted by:Fred |