Last week was the week of coincidences for Karachiites. First coincidence: the beleaguered President Pervez Musharraf breaks a three-month long silence, and vows to hit back. Another coincidence: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM)chief warns that Taliban have surrounded Karachi, and are planning to capture it, but Karachiites will never let them do that. Yet another coincidence: A series of bomb blasts rock the Pushtun-dominated areas of the metropolis injuring over 50 people.
This all happened within a week. The last incident of the week i.e. seven bomb blasts within an hour, have raised many questions about these “coincidences”.
The blasts occurred between 7:05pm and 7:50pm, with an interval of eight to 10 minutes, at Banaras Chowk, Orangi Town, Pak Colony and Shahrah-i-Noorjahan, in all Pushtun-dominated areas.
Like in the past there was no immediate claim of responsibility. The blasts hit the western and central parts of the city, located within a range of five kilometres.
Witnesses said the first bomb exploded at a garbage dump at Banaras Chowk, a low-lying area located in the west of Karachi. A majority of the inhabitants of the area are small business owners, labourers and transporters belonging to Pushtun community.
Area residents took to the streets soon after the first blast, however, the witnesses say, the violent protest came to an abrupt halt when another blast occurred at a nearby pavement. Sixteen people were injured in the two blasts.
Not long after the ambulances began shifting victims to hospital, a third blast rocked the neighbourhood in North Nazimabad, leaving the city in a state of shock.
The device was planted in a truck and at least eight people were wounded in the blast.
A senior police officer told weekly Pulse that the truck had a refill from a petrol pump in Banaras Chowk, where the two blasts took place.
Witnesses said the fourth bomb exploded near Khyber Hotel, in Frontier Colony, Orangi Town. While the bewildered people were still trying to make out what had happened, a big bang caused by another blast at nearby Qasba Chowk set off a wave of panic.
Residents said two bomb blasts occurred in parts of Pak Colony, wounding over a dozen people and destroying four motorcycles, a taxi and a house.
According to bomb disposal officials, 150-200 grams of explosives were used in each of the seven explosions - only enough to create a relatively small blast.
Observers find the serial bomb attack in the provincial capital different from the usual pattern of terrorist strikes in the country. Most of the bombs used were of a low intensity and designed more to spread panic than to cause large-scale human casualty.
Most of the suicide attacks over the past one year have targeted law-enforcement personnel or, in the case of some areas in the North-West Frontier Province, political or sectarian rivals.
Understandably, the series of blasts was aimed at sowing terror, but more than that triggering ethnic riots in the metropolis. Angry mobs did take to the streets following the bomb blasts, burnt tyres, and pelted the vehicular traffic with stones, but general public was wise enough to Smell the conspiracy and remained cool.
For last few months, the MQM has been warning the citizens that some secret agencies were engaged in Talibanization of Karachi, and for that they are bringing people from tribal areas to Karachi. However, it said, the MQM will never allow the Talibanization of Karachi.
The MQM also blames the “tribal people” for their alleged involvement in armed robberies, kidnap for ransom and other crimes in the city. The MQM’s statements, as per expectations, propelled the Awami National Party (ANP), the Jamaat-i-Islami, and the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, which have a strong votebank in Pushtun-dominated localities, to react.
These parties claim that the MQM wants to hold its losing grip over Karachi by triggering Pushtun-Mohajir riots in line with the past. This is a known fact that ethnic parties do need violence after short and long intervals to keep their respective supporters united.
Political observers agree that the current turmoil will go in favour of only one person, and that is General (retired) Pervez Musharraf, who has broken the silence, and vowed to hit back.
Addressing a reception organised by a group of traders in Karachi, Musharraf openly criticised the government’s performance contending that the country was facing serious challenges.
According to sources, the reception was the brainchild of Governor Sindh Dr Ishratul Ebad who persuaded a group of those traders whose factories are located in MQM-dominated areas, to “honour Musharraf”.
However, the mainstream traders’ bodies like Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FPCCI), and Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI) remained away from the reception.
Addressing the reception, Musharraf refused to resign claiming that he is still needed for the country.
The most surprising event was the highly charged speech of City Nazim Mustafa Kamal, whose party is a coalition partner in Sindh. An emotional city nazim, who otherwise too is popular for using abusive language and sometimes manhandling his sub-ordinates, used highly derogatory language against the PPP and the PML-N.
The city nazim blamed the PPP for sitting with “murderers of Bhutto”. “Who was the killer of Bhutto? Asked Mustafa Kamal to the traders and broke the silence by replying Ziaul Haq. Who he retorted was the successor of Zia? Nawaz Sharif, and since the PPP was partners with him, “shame on them”, Kamal said.
The Sindh governor, Dr Ishratul Ebad, had a big smile on his face during Kamal’s speech.
It is to be mentioned here that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and any other PPP minister did not attend any gathering where Musharraf was invited during his three-day visit. However, the governor and all MQM ministers appeared to be the cabinet members of Musharraf rather than the chief minister.
Musharraf’s visit rekindled the memories of those days, when the Sindh governor was running his own government, and the then chief minister, Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, was restricted to interior of Sindh only.
For the first time in the last eight years, Musharraf stayed at the Governor House. Political pundits feel that Musharraf’s visit, and the “pre-planned” hard-hitting speech of Mustafa Kamal have widened the gulf between the PPP, and
the MQM ranging from cut in the budget of city government to wrangling over control of different departments.
Musharraf also held a meeting with the PML-F chief and spiritual leader of Hurs Pir Sahib Pagara at the Governor House.
According to Governor House sources, the meeting lasted for one hour. Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad was also present on the occasion. Sources say that the three leaders discussed various issues relating to current political situation, especially Musharraf’s recently adopted aggressive policy towards the coalition government, and possibility of a united front comprising pro-Musharraf parties.
However, Pir Sahib Pagara while denying the establishment of any such front against the coalition government, says that he was an ally of Musharraf, and would remain the same in future.
“Allies are neither old nor new. Allies are just allies, and I will be his ally. I have assured him of that,” Pir Pagara told weekly Pulse.
He said he did not see a bright future for the coalition
government, which, he thought, would not survive for more than a few weeks.
“You are talking about six months, I think, it cannot survive for more than a few weeks,” he maintained.
To a question, he said he was seeing presidential system, or martial law following the ouster of incumbent government.
Asked what are the chances of presidential system in the country, Pir Pagara said: “I would not have said this, if there would not have been such chances”.
Political observers believe that Musharraf has decided to play on front-foot with the help of MQM and Pir Sahib Pagara’s PML-F, which have come out to support him openly.
On the other hand, MQM Chief Altaf Hussain has summoned an important meeting of the party in London to review the overall political and economic situation in Pakistan and MQM’s relations with the PPP-led coalition.
MQM sources said the issues like unnecessary interference by non-MQM ministers in the affairs of the MQM-held portfolios and various other problems would be discussed at the meeting.
The sources said the participants would also exchange views on whether the MQM should join the federal cabinet in the prevailing circumstances or not. Besides all arguments, analysts predict that the “coincidences” occurred during last week may bring surprising changes in the current setup. Let’s wait and see.
