Pakistan

Face-saving: Altaf advises PTI to withdraw its candidate

Altaf says the PTI chief Imran Khan should compensate for his sins

Our Correspondent April 20, 2015

Altaf says the PTI chief Imran Khan should compensate for his sins. PHOTO: MQM

KARACHI:

While congratulating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) rally for holding a rally in Karachi, Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain advised the PTI to save face by withdrawing its candidate in favour of the MQM candidate, Kunwar Naveed Qamar, at NA-246 constituency’s by polls.

“For face-saving, the PTI should withdraw its candidate in support of our candidate,” Altaf told his party workers at the Jinnah Ground in late hours of Sunday.

Altaf said the PTI chief Imran Khan should compensate for his sins. He said his opponents criticised him for crying and singing during his speeches. “Imran Khan should remember that when a child is born, it also cries,” he said, adding that: “I love melody and songs and believe that a person who does not love music is not a human being.”
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20^th, 2015.

COMMENTS (19)

Urban Legend | 9 years ago | Reply @Lolz: My friend, the mindset that everything is all right caused detachment of East Pakistan, now Bangladesh. We in Karachi feel so often the need to be a Sindhi speaking or a Punjabi in so many situations. You think that millions of people in Karachi are supporting MQM for no reason? Like i said earlier, unless the Karachi's core issues are understood and addressed, Pakistan would continue to have challenges.

ishrat salim | 9 years ago | Reply this election has 2 message for MQM : 1 - they have been proved that they shelter criminals, people knew this but has been further exposed with the recent raid & recorded statements by the arrested criminals etc; 2 - they will win no doubt but not with a enormous margin as in the past. their vote bank will remain almost intact as 246 is their home ground, they may still win but with a simple majority - say 100,000 votes & 40 to 50,000 votes split between PTI & JI. Both the parties are aware of this, yet the main purpose of their participation is that, PTI & JI participation will remove the fear factor from peoples mind & that is the main aim of the Army etc;

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Lolz | 9 years ago | Reply @Urban Legend: Hello! This is Pakistan, not a Jageer that you would put regional restrictions! PTI has been struggling for an environment where a commoner like you could even contest. Have a look around, one family been ruling in Punjab, One family in Sindh and Urban Karachi is being ruled by an urban jageerdar and that from abroad! What a pity that same 3 or 4 faces been ruling for 3 decades and the same preach loud about democracy Lolz..... Open up your eyes for a different view!

Urban Legend | 9 years ago | Reply @raider: you are amazingly stupid. And quite oblivious of general sentiments of Karachi awaam. Majority of PTI's leaders in Karachi have their hometown somewhere in Punjab or KPK. Its a serious ethic issue here in Sindh where urdu speaking people are discriminated by others (Sindhis, Punjabis and Pathans) who are people in real power here. And thats what cause real hatred for parties like PTI and others who do not talk about core issues of Karachi.

raider | 9 years ago | Reply @Urban Legend: come to your senses, candidates of pti and ji belong to Karachi even brought up in streets of Karachi, rather mqm candidate imported from Hyderabad, your argument is so fierce and piercing to be published. then modi in India should only govern Gujarat, how ET allows such unconvincing and subconscious comments to public

Urban Legend | 9 years ago | Reply @raider: Karachi and Urban Sindh are BIG, with more than 10% of the country population living in this region and more than 60% of country revenue collected. It requires better understanding of governing elite to rule Karachi. We dont need outsiders from other cities in Sindh and other provinces to govern us. Leaders (good or bad) come from within, they are not imported!

Farida | 9 years ago | Reply I wish and pray that IK win and terrorism should be finished from Karachi for ever. It is important.

raider | 9 years ago | Reply @Adnan Siddiqi: review your argument once, you may reach a conclusion that you had dynastic element inherited from some one in your blood

A-No.1 | 9 years ago | Reply Think of what happens if MQM loses. I don't think the winning candidate will be able to enter his constituency.

Omer | 9 years ago | Reply @dream on: keep dreaming.. Regards, A Punjabi

Adnan Siddiqi | 9 years ago | Reply @raider: wake up and take some medicine Pot calling the kettle black.

dream on | 9 years ago | Reply IK jalsa was not on a bridge. it was definetly bigger than mqm narrow jalsa. but it was not managed well. lights and sound problems left the people lost and they returned home to watch IK on tv. rest of the people can think what they like. mqm needs to wake up and realise thf they r no more needed in karachi. regards, a muhajir

raider | 9 years ago | Reply @Urban Legend: i think pti and mqm don't share commonalities, mqm is regional party particularly of Karachi while pti keeps its vote bank in whole country, it is not any contest between mainstream political parties but stupidity of pti has made it such

Adnan Siddiqi | 9 years ago | Reply Prudent advice. Imran Ismail is a joke of a candidate who has absolutely no political credentials to speak of apart from him and his pal Faisal Wadwa being one of the pioneer "Investment Group" inside PTI. I have maintained this all along that Imran Ismail's ancestral constituency is NA-251 Karachi and back in 2013, he wasn't even considered for a PTI ticket from this constituency and instead PTI's candidate was Raja Azhar Khan.

Urban Legend | 9 years ago | Reply PTI jalsa was a joke! though mainstream media did not discuss size of the crowd this time (for PTI face saving), the fact remains that MQM crowd was 100 times bigger than that of PTI. IK's charm can certainly attract many girls and cricket loving youngsters, but votes go to people who are trusted.

raider | 9 years ago | Reply @GHQ: wake up and take some medicine, MQM reigning Karachi for last 25 years

raider | 9 years ago | Reply i think ghost polling stations would have been established and assured

Karachi | 9 years ago | Reply Well, yesterday PTI flop-show was self evidence that PTI is now reduced to few thousand only. The difference between PTI and MQM was prim-facie evidence that: - All attendees on the jalsa of MQM belong to NA-246 only; - Whereas, the complete Karachi PTI support was present yesterday, where they failed to match discipline/peace shown by MQM. No doubt NA-246 belongs to MQM only. Now, nothing I mean Nothing can save PTI from being humiliated in NA-246. Both PTI and JI are going to lose their faces on the day of judgement. So, Pakistani fellows are you ready to see their (PTI+JI) disgrace?

GHQ | 9 years ago | Reply Punjabi establishment will lose in Karachi. Zindabad MQM!

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