Contempt notice: Excuse Altaf from personal appearance, MQM asks SC

Farooq Sattar seeks permission for MQM chief to be represented by his attorneys.

KARACHI:

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has pleaded the Supreme Court to exempt Altaf Hussain, its founding chief, from appearing in person before the court in response to a contempt notice issued to him in Karachi suo motu implementation case.

The apex court has also been prayed to order urgent hearing of the plea – the matter is already fixed for January 7.

On December 14, the apex court had issued contempt of court notice to Altaf Hussain, observing the he used contemptuous language about the judiciary and the judges.

In his telephonic address to a gathering in Karachi from London on December 2, the MQM chief had said that the judges should apologise for their remarks on delimitation of Karachi’s constituencies.

Among other political stakeholders in the city, MQM was the only critic of the apex court’s suggestion of redrawing constituencies in the city.

Headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the three-member bench took exception to Altaf Hussain’s speech and issued notice to him to personally appear before the bench and explain as to why contempt of court proceedings should not be initiated against him.

Scores had taken to the streets in Karachi against the issuance of contempt notice to the MQM founder in a show of solidarity. Altaf later asked them to end the protest immediately.

Threat to life

On Friday, the MQM chief filed a criminal miscellaneous application through his attorney Dr Farooq Sattar, the deputy convener of the party’s Rabita Committee, in the SC Karachi registry.

Sattar submitted that the applicant Altaf Hussain, the founding leader of MQM, holds all the courts and their judges in highest esteem. The applicant is also committed to upholding and ensuring constitutionalism and independence of judiciary.

He said the applicant was under a direct threat from extremist outfits. He also submitted copies of the newspaper clippings quoting the TTP leaders’ threats to the secular parties, including MQM.

In the past also similar threats have been issued to MQM, said Farooq Sattar.



He submitted that since 1987 till date the MQM has achieved landslide electoral victories in the urban Sindh, adding that the people, who follow and vote for MQM, hold an immense emotional attachment for Altaf Hussain, which requires no elaboration.

“For the safety and security of their leader, Altaf Hussain, which is well enshrined under the Article 9 of the Constitution, the Rabita/Coordination Committee both in Pakistan and UK, so also his followers, have relentlessly beseeched their leader not to come to Pakistan in view of the threat to his life and liberty,” he stated.

The applicant cited the precarious security scenario in the country to hammer home the point. “The tragic and deplorable assassinations of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and Shaheed Bashir Ahmed Bilour are only just a few instances.”

In the application, the SC has been pleaded to exempt MQM founder Altaf Hussain from making a personal appearance in court in response to the December 14, 2012 order “and permit the applicant to enter appearance either through his attorney, Dr Farooq Sattar, or through Dr Farogh Naseem Advocate of the Supreme Court”.

Urgent hearing

Through another miscellaneous application, the Supreme Court has been requested to fix the application of exemption for urgent hearing, as the matter is already fixed for January 7 at the SC’s principal seat in Islamabad.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 5^th, 2013.