Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told the MQM delegation that the operation in Karachi was not against any political party. Sharif added that people of Karachi have already suffered a lot and it is moral duty of all political parties to make sincere efforts towards restoring peace and stability in the mega city. The Karachi operation began with consensus among all parties and it would continue till the elimination of all criminal elements in the city, he added.
The Prime Minister further stated that law enforcement agencies have been directed to target terrorists and criminals across the board to rid the people of this menace. "PML-N does not believe in the policy of confrontation. We have struggled for the restoration of democracy and for upholding the rule of law having learnt a lot from the past. We have faced extremely difficult times but did not compromise on principles," he said.
Talking to media after a meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Dr Farooq Sattar said that no illegal weapon was recovered from Nine-Zero. According to him, no criminal was provided safe haven at party's headquarters. He also posed a question as to who would be held responsible for the political damage caused to MQM through allegations.
He added that criminals were arrested from the adjoining areas. He said that MQM has been fully co-operating with the law enforcement agencies in their fight against criminal elements in Karachi. He said his party has never created obstacles in the operation.
According to him, through a raid on party's head office, an impression is being created that criminals have been arrested from Nine-Zero. He said the raid on Nine-Zero has badly damaged MQM's credibility.
Another MQM leader Maqbool Siddiqui said that they have reminded the Prime Minister that operation was started in Karachi on the demand of MQM but the proposed committee to monitor the operation was never constituted. Such a committee was not established simply because of the fact there should not be any difficulty in levelling allegations on MQM, he added. He said the Saulat Mirza's statement cannot become a charge-sheet against MQM.
He said that they have taken up the issue of video tape with the Prime Minister. He added that the Prime Minister has assured them that he would inquire into the matter and let them know who made the video and released it to media.
The MQM delegation comprised Dr Farooq Sattar, Abdul Rashid Godail and Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui. Federal Ministers for Information, Pervaiz Rashid and Railways, Khawaja Saad Rafiq as well as Political Secretary to PM Dr Asif Kirmani also attended the meeting.