Maritime Affairs Minister Faisal Subzwari addresses a press conference in Karachi
Maritime Affairs Minister Faisal Subzwari, who belongs to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), on Wednesday condemned the killing of three MQM workers whose bodies were found from different parts of Sindh after they went “missing” from Karachi.
Addressing a press conference with other party leaders, he said the bodies had been found over the past two days. “Irfan Basarat’s body was found yesterday in Sanghar; Abid Abbasi’s body was found in Nawabshah; while Wasim Raju’s body was recovered from Mirpurkhas,” he said, regretting that the bodies had raised serious questions over the credibility of the federal and provincial governments.
“Our bodies will be found only because we speak Urdu,” he said, adding such incidents had been occurring since 1992 whether or not the MQM-P was in government. “The three [slain] activists were kidnapped and then subjected to enforced disappearances,” he alleged and demanded an inquiry into their killing. He also questioned if the “Constitution of Pakistan only became silent when it comes to the issues of MQM-P workers.”
Referring to a recent case before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in which a missing person had been recovered upon Chief Justice Athar Minallah’s orders, he wondered why similar orders were not issued for MQM-P workers.
Investigation ordered
As outrage mounted within the MQM-P—with several voices calling for the party to exit the ruling coalition in protest—the federal government said it would investigate the incident. Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said he had assured the MQM-P that the government would “look into the matter,” adding that the federal and Sindh governments would bring those responsible to justice.
A day earlier, the body of another “missing” MQM-P worker who had gone missing in Karachi was found in Sanghar district. The MQM-P and the MQM faction affiliated with Altaf Hussain have both expressed severe concerns over the killings.