Back to your seats, please

The resignation of eight senators, 24 MNAs and 51 MPAs all belonging to the MQM is a seismic political event. They all tendered their resignations on August 12 in protest at what they saw as the party’s “victimisation” by security agencies in Karachi. They claimed that the federal and provincial governments had termed what was described as “a blind eye” to their grievances and that their only option was resignation. Their decision to resign seemingly stems from the federal government’s move to send a legal reference against MQM chief Altaf Hussain, currently resident in London, for what are described as “anti-state” speeches.

A plethora of issues arise. It remains to be seen how the government handles the resignations of the MQM legislators. Here, one would be advised to revisit how the issue of the resignation of PTI parliamentarians was handled. In that case, the resignations lay on the desk of the speaker of the National Assembly for days and weeks, with the PTI eventually returning to the parliamentary fold. In the MQM’s case, the ruling party has moved quickly to say it has decided not to accept the resignations and something of a stalemate is in prospect.

Altaf Hussain has, of late, been stirring the pot of troubles once again, and his party has no control over what he says and when he says it. On the wider political front, the PTI will be eyeing the prospect of by-elections, if the resignations are accepted, in which it may — or may not — make gains. For its part, the government needs to recalibrate the Karachi operation to redress the impression that it is targeted solely at the MQM; and that other political parties are being let off the hook when it comes to the taking down of their armed wings and the cutting of criminal ties. The MQM has, to a degree, been its own worst enemy over the years, but political tides have shifted and there must be no return to the days of political parties conducting open warfare on the streets. The MQM has made its point. Now back to your seats ladies and gentlemen. Thank you.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 14^th,  2015.

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