Adil Najam
The murder of Dr. Imran Farooq – one of the founders of MQM, a central figure in the development of the party and a key architect of its conceptual and ideological foundations – in London has sent shock around Pakistani political circles, particularly in Karachi.
Once second in prominence in MQM circles only to Altaf Hussain, Imran Farooq has been out of political news for many years now and had distanced himself – or been distanced – from mainstream day-to-day MQM affairs. The reasons why have remained unclear but the stuff of rumor mills. His murder in London is bound to reignite the rumor mills again. Indeed, they already have.
It remains unclear what happened in London. But it is clear that the repercussions of what happened there will be felt in Karachi and beyond well into and after the 10-day “mourning period” declared by MQM. Right now all television channels seem more engrossed in showing MQM leader Altaf Hussain’s near hysterical breakdown at MQM’s London offices, but we need to also begin thinking through the many critical questions that remain unanswered: Was this a run of the mill mugging and murder in a large international metropolis, or an international political targeting? If the later, who was behind it and why? But most important of all: what, if anything, does this mean for MQM; and by extension for Karachi and Pakistan?
Details still remain sketchy and there are more rumors floating than facts. This report from Dawn lays out the essential details:
Dr Imran Farooq, a founding leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and the organisation’s first secretary general, was assassinated in London on Thursday evening. Dr Farooq also served as the party’s only convener.
Television reports, quoting party and family sources, said Dr Farooq was attacked by some unidentified men with daggers near his London residence. He died of multiple wounds. But according to one source, a lone assailant had been lying in wait inside the apartment block where Dr Farooq lived on the first floor. He was attacked with a knife when he was climbing the stairs. He died on the spot.
At first the MQM leadership tried to keep the murder under wraps. Meetings in different cities to mark the 57th birthday of the party’s founding leader, Altaf Hussain, were suddenly cancelled for “unavoidable reasons” and supporters were told by senior leader Dr Farooq Sattar to go home. Tens of thousands of people had assembled in different places in Karachi, Hyderabad and other towns in Sindh to celebrate their leader’s birthday.
At the same time, the MQM leadership in Karachi and London went into closed-door sessions to discuss the situation arising out of the development. Reports from London said the police had cordoned off the apartment block and preliminary investigations had begun. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack so far and no arrests have been made.
Dr Imran Farooq is remembered by Muttahida loyalists as one of the key figures who laid the foundation for the All Pakistan Mohajir Students’ Organisation (APMSO), which eventually turned out to be a forerunner of the MQM. During the early 1980s, the APMSO was converted into a fully fledged political party to advocate the cause of the Urdu-speaking popuce, mainly in Karachi and other parts of urban Sindh. With Altaf Hussain as its leader, the bespectacled Dr Farooq was appointed secretary general of the party. He was also regarded as one of the main ideologues and the brain behind education of the party cadre.
When in 1992 Altaf Hussain went into self-imposed exile in the wake of a military crackdown, Dr Farooq went underground in Karachi, running the party from hiding. Although he was declared absconder by the then government, he continued to dodge the authorities. Eventually he managed to slip out of the country on a fake passport and under an assumed name. After arriving in London, he applied for political asylum. In the initial years he was one of the main players who helped Altaf Hussain oversee the party’s restructuring from London.
However, a couple of years ago differences emerged, sending Dr Farooq into obscurity. Since then he had been living the life of a recluse, with no role in party affairs. Even then his brutal killing sent the Muttahida rank and file into a daze, leaving them searching for answers.
At last Imran Farooq went on a way on which he sent tens of innocent people in the 90’s decade.
Thats why people say, “as you sow, so shall you reap”
May almighty Allah pardon him and give peace and rest to his soul.
I have read a number of fallacies about Dr Imran Farooq here and will want to clarify:
1.’ Imran Farooq was against the military establishment and armed forces of Pakistan’
This is not true at all. Imran Farooq made no response even to the ‘head price’ that had been fixed on him by the then corrupt feudal Corps Commander General Naseer Akhtar during Karachi’s military and feudal occupation from 1992-99.
2. ‘Imran Farooq was against Punjabis’
That is not true because Imran Farooq was hiding in Lahore between 1992-99 and the military high command and ISI knew about his whereabouts.
3. ‘Imran Farooq was in India/Dubai etc before leaving for the UK in 1999’
This has been proven false by the statements of Saulat Mirza who was asked by Nawaz Sharif to lie about Imran Farooq’s death during Nawaz II when the Army was once again unleashed on Karachiites following the still unsolved assassination of Hakim Saeed.
4. ‘Imran Farooq was spreading hatred against Punjabis’
Spreading awareness against retards like Nawaz Sharif and Ghulam Mustafa Khar does not mean spreading hatred against Punjabis. Nawaz Sharif had a cyclical pattern of attacking Karachi according to his mental level whenever he got the chance. Nawaz Sharif would get elected Prime Minister with MQM support in 1992 and 1997 but within a few days show his true colours by dismissing MQM from government and sending Karachi under Army occupation. The first Army operation in Karachi was started after the abduction and murder of a businessman called Ashiqali Heerji Dessa in 1992 and the second after the martyrdom of Hakim Saeed in 1999. Both killings are hitherto unsolved. It is also true that Nawaz Sharif had the support for his tyranny by corrupt feudal (Punjabi) generals from his province who agreed with this policy of occupying and destroying Karachi and Karachiites respectively until Pervez Musharraf put an end to Nawaz Sharif’s reign of terror.
5. ‘Imran Farooq came to the UK in 1999 from India’
That is not true because he came from Lahore to the UK.
6. ‘Imran Farooq had a falling out with Altaf Hussain’
That much is true and it was a very public falling out. It is also well-known that Altaf Hussain is fond of doing’ fateha’ for members of his own party quite often.
7. ‘Imran Farooq’s murder is being investigated’
That is untrue too. The reason is that Imran Farooq was killed with a knife rather than MQM’s weapon of choice— the klashnikov. British police are chasing shadows in the name of the Taliban when we all know that this murder could have been prevented from happening in the first place given Altaf Hussain’s violent antecedents and suppression of dissent within party ranks.
May Imran Farooq’s soul rest in peace. Ameen.
Yes Imran Farooq has been murdered, but wait don’t become people like Sialkot and start blaming and taking off your frustrations on particular faction/party/person just because you don’t like them or have been exposed to lot of material imposed by the people who never like them or will never want them to become powerful.
Just try to understand few question first “Who is getting the benefit out of this murder?” “Could it be a bigger game then it seem? Look like total start of new propaganda to destabilize a power which is starting to grip the nerve of some?? ”.
Like it or don’t MQM have 100% support from Urdu-Speaking Faction so give them due respect or just name your leaders also in your comments and I can open a plethora of scum that prove them even more dirty then the MQM leaders. NO ONE IS CLEAN IN THIS MESS like what Mantoo has said “Is hamam me sub nange hy”
Please wait and let the investigation get completed and thank you for your patience in advance.
@reading lord, regarding your “i” before “s” question,
Allow me to offer an explanation.
when some word is imported in the Urdu Language, it is written in Urdu, and then spoken as written.
In urdu, the first letter of any word is joined to the next letter by a zabar, zer, or pesh, the first letter does not start with a sukoon or jazm. so the closest way to match the english pronounciation is to add an “alif” at the beginning.
e.g. school ==> iskool, instead of sakool, sukool, or sikool.
hope that answers your question.
Altaf is a curse for Karachi, just like Zardari is a curse for Pakistan.