- Security withdrawn from MQM-P leaders and lawmakers.
- Sindh government rejects claims of politicising tragedy.
- Committee to assess Gul Plaza losses weeks: Sadia Javed.
A Sindh government spokesperson said on Tuesday that the police shortage may explain the withdrawal of security from Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leaders.
“Karachi has fewer police personnel, so it is possible that security was withdrawn due to this,” said Sindh government spokesperson Sadia Javed while speaking on Geo News programme “Geo Pakistan”.
She said there must be reasons behind the decision, adding that she herself does not have police security, nor do Sindh’s ruling party MPAs. “There must be some reasons for withdrawing security from MQM-P leaders,” she said.
MQM-P is part of the ruling coalition in the federal government but sits on the opposition benches in the provincial assembly in Sindh.
Javed also acknowledged that the absence of a forensic laboratory in Sindh was a government shortcoming, saying the provincial forensic lab would become operational by the end of this year.
Responding to a question on the relocation of Gul Plaza affectees, she said two plazas located opposite Gul Plaza would be used to shift shopkeepers. She added that the government was in talks with plaza owners, noting that one plaza has 500 shops while the other has 350.
The spokesperson said a committee would assess the losses suffered in the Gul Plaza incident, adding that compensation would also be provided by the government. She said the committee would submit its report within three weeks.
MQM-P leader and Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal told Geo News that his security has also been withdrawn. He condemned the tragedy at Gul Plaza, where people lost their lives, calling the incident a failure of oversight.
He added that the authorities believe withdrawing security will intimidate them, but he rejected this notion. Kamal questioned the right of the current administration to govern Karachi, asserting that the federal government can take control of the city through a notification if necessary.
The senior MQM-P leader criticised the “Jiye Sindh” activists, claiming they stand on the roads chanting anti-Pakistan slogans, while the Sindh government continues to provide them security. He reiterated that the Gul Plaza tragedy exposed negligence and poor performance, which he described as an injustice.
He stressed that calling out such injustices has provoked a hostile response and called once again for Karachi to be freed from the grip of the ruling authorities, accusing them of destroying Pakistan through their actions.
Kamal stated that the federal government has been formally approached and that the issue is being raised in cabinet meetings, emphasising that the entire federal government and state apparatus are aware of their position. He contrasted global achievements, said: “The world reaches the moon while our children fall into sewers.”
He clarified that they are not advocating anything undemocratic or unconstitutional and indicated that they will also engage with the Pakistan Peoples Party, accusing it of acting against them to their own detriment. Kamal concluded that, under Article 148, the federal government should take control of Karachi to restore order.
Security cover was also withdrawn from Federal Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, senior leaders Farooq Sattar and Anis Kaimkhani, MQM-P’s opposition leader in the Sindh Assembly Ali Khurshidi, and other provincial lawmakers.
The Sindh government has rejected the criticism, with Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon accusing the party of politicising the tragedy.
