‘PPP gave Uzair Rs50m to convince him’

Former party leader makes startling revelations about alleged contacts between Uzair and PPP

KARACHI:

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had allegedly given Rs50 million to outlawed Peoples Amn Committee chief Uzair Baloch to convince the gangster who had reportedly been angry with the party over carrying out an operation in Lyari in 2012.

This was stated by the Lyari gang warfare kingpin’s close aide and PPP former leader Habib Jan Baloch in a video released by Federal Minister for Shipping and Maritime Affairs Ali Zaidi on social media.

Zaidi had uploaded edited parts of an interview of Habib in which he had made startling revelations about the alleged contacts between Uzair Baloch and the PPP.

On Friday, Zaidi had tweeted that he would soon release an “explosive video” which would "expose former president Asif Ali Zardari and his gang.”

“Crime and politics have gone hand in hand. Mafia Don Asif Zardari and his henchman Qadir Patel exposed yet again by Habib Jan who was once in the middle of it all,” Zaidi tweeted in the video showing Habib talking about Uzair and Zardari.

In the video, Habib claimed that soon after the 2012 Lyari operation, the PPP had re-established contact with Uzair who had been angry with the party over the action carried out in the area.

Habib said that the PPP gave Rs50 million cash to Uzair after which the gangster rejoined the party.

“On the invitation of Uzair Baloch, then Sindh chief minister Qaim Ali Shah went there [to Lyari], so did Sharmila Farooqi, so did Faryal [Talpur] sahiba. My office was also attacked and my brother was killed. According to Chaudhry Aslam, [former PPP interior minister] Rehman Malik was at the helm of the operation,” Habib said.

He also alleged that the PPP would transfer police officials on the whims of Baloch.

“This is true. IG Sindh’s transfer was also done and the interior ministry used to stand at their [the gangster’s] door in the form of Rehman Malik,” Habib said.

He also revealed that Zardari held a meeting with Uzair in which PPP leader Qadir Patel was also present.

“Zardari wanted his foster brother Owais Muzaffar ‘Tappi’ to contest election from Lyari,” he said.

“One day ‘Tappi’ came to Lyari along with former PPP leader Faisal Raza Abdi and Chaudhry Aslam accompanied by 50 cars. It was then that problems were created for Peoples Party in Lyari,” he added.

When asked when the relations between Uzair and the PPP came to an end, Habib said "when the government started getting into trouble."

Meanwhile, Rehman Malik on Saturday rejected the claims made by Habib Jan Baloch and termed them a “pack of lies”.

He directed his lawyer in London to issue a notice to Habib and a channel for running the “fabricated” news against him.

Malik’s spokesperson stated that the former interior had never met Uzair Baloch in his life and Habib’s claim about the PPP leader in the video was “false and fabricated”.

The spokesperson said that Malik, in his capacity as the interior minister, had initiated action against Uzair and after the approval from the then president Asif Zardari, he had issued directions to blacklist and impose restrictions on him.

Malik had announced the head money on Uzair while being the interior minister and several raids had been conducted to capture the gangster, whereas once Baloch managed to escape minutes before a raid was carried out at a farmhouse.

The spokesperson said that a record of the action taken against Uzair was available with the interior ministry.

According to Malik, Habib was angry with the PPP because he was not given the party ticket.

For this reason, he had joined Uzair Baloch and later left for the United Kingdom.

It was further stated said that Zardari had never extended any favour to Uzair and that a false propaganda had been launched against the former president by his political opponents.

A wave of allegations and counter allegations between the PTI and PPP continued after the joint investigation report on Uzair Baloch was released last week after months of wrangling.