Key Takeaways
- Karachi police registered a case under terrorism charges following a scuffle.
- Two groups, supporters of Mustafa Kamal-Anis Qaimkhani and Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, were involved in the clash.
- Three individuals sustained injuries during the incident.
Karachi police have registered a case under terrorism charges following a scuffle between two groups at the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s headquarters in Karachi on Sunday evening. The first information report, dated August 4 and available with Dawn, was registered at the New Town police station.
The incident occurred during a meeting of the MQM-P at the party's headquarters in Bahadurabad. According to Assistant Sub-Inspector Mirza Anwar Baig, supporters of Mustafa Kamal-Anis Qaimkhani allegedly beat and threw out their opponents from the party headquarters. The situation escalated after Siddiqui left the meeting.
The scuffle led to heavy firing inside the party headquarters, causing fear and panic among residents in the area. Two named suspects, identified as Azhar alias Lumba and Zeeshan Habib, were nominated in the FIR along with 20-25 unidentified individuals.
According to the FIR, a man identified as Amir sustained a bullet wound in his arm during the clash, while two others, Asad and Kashir Ali, also received injuries. The injured men were taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for treatment.
The police official stated that the suspects kept firing at each other and in the air, which caused terror and panic among people in the area. The Sindh government had imposed Section 144, under which the display of weapons and rioting was prohibited.
Following the incident, the situation was further complicated by heavy firing from inside the party headquarters. An official told Dawn that police patrolling and deployment had been increased in the area to provide a sense of protection to residents who were quite afraid following the clash and heavy firing at the MQM-P headquarters.
The FIR invoked Sections 147, 148, 149, 337-A(i), 337H(ii), 324, and 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act. The complainant received information at 8pm on August 2 that a clash had broken out near Bahadurabad’s Choti Market.
The official mentioned that the suspects fled the scene after the incident. It was not clear what led to the scuffle between the two groups, but it is understood that workers from the Qaimkhani group allegedly assaulted members of the Siddiqui group and forcibly removed them from the party's headquarters.
