Burying the hatchet?: Altaf asks PTI, JI to forget the bitterness of the past

JI spokesperson Zahid Askari denies receiving any support from MQM

KARACHI:

In an apparent gesture of goodwill, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain asked Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) to forget the bitterness of the past and begin a new phase of love and mutual respect.

“We should adhere to the policy of live and let live,” he said. Hussain invited PTI to hold a public meeting at Jinnah Ground as they had earlier planned. “MQM is ready to extend its unconditional support to PTI even if they intend to hold a public gathering on Sharae Pakistan,” he claimed. He further welcomed JI to hold a public meeting in Federal B Area on April 12.

Meanwhile, JI spokesperson Zahid Askari denied receiving any support from the MQM. “We have been here in Karachi since after Partition,” he said, adding that they did not need anyone’s help and could arrange their procession on their own. Imran Ismail, PTI’s candidate for the NA-246 by-polls, expressed his appreciation for Hussain’s offer but said that the party’s decision to organise a rally at Jinnah Ground had nothing to do with MQM’s approval.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 11^th, 2015.