When Al Capone was sent to jail on tax evasion charges for seven years in 1931, it was the culmination of the combined efforts of US federal, state and local authorities that had been trying to end the reign of the charismatic mafia boss for two decades. It was also an unusual indictment for a man known for organised crime, target killing, extortion, racketeering and illegal businesses. Capone was not an ideological warhorse. He was not the product of any disenfranchised nation. He was a simple semi-literate immigrant who found his calling in street gangs. At the height of his power, Chicago politicians sought his support for electoral victory. He never aimed to be, nor was ever declared the father of any nation, which makes the soup MQM finds itself in, a bit more tasteless. The level of accountability being shown to Altaf Hussain at this juncture of his life is unprecedented, even by British standards. The party that can launch a May 12 any time it wants finds itself stuck in a land where politicians get free air tickets to flee, while their leader is stuck in a place where ministers resign over parking tickets. And yet, for all the gung-ho above board credentials of Scotland Yard, it is a fact that the British government and law enforcement agencies ignored the pleas of many including Benazir Bhutto, Imran Khan and George Galloway, to bring the MQM chief under investigation. It all changed with Imran Farooq’s murder or maybe Altaf Hussain ceased to be of importance to the greater powers-that-be. Whatever the reason, June 3, 2014 was in the making for the last four years and the repercussions of money-laundering charges will kill more than just one man. In the best colonial tradition, once again Pakistan is left to pick up the pieces. Violence is expected and will most certainly occur. On any normal day, eight to ten people die in Karachi on average. Last year the death toll was a monstrous 3,200. Then there are the special cases: 289 deaths in Baldia Town factory; 48 on May 12, 2007; 33 in the PNS Mehran base attack; 40 in the MA Jinnah Road Ashura bombing; Lyari gang war victims. The last thing the city needs is another massacre.
There is a danger that the MQM will divide into small splinter groups. Vultures in the garb of Pathan, Sindhi, Balochi, Urdu-speaking political factions are biding their time to grab a greater piece of the criminal pie. Arshad Pappu and Baba Ladla are dead. Uzair Baloch is out of the country. It will take time for the second-tiers to gather their level of power. The police and Rangers, stretched to their limits, are already ineffective. In this transition, the people of Karachi are truly alone. It is time for much soul-searching, though whether it will be done is anybody’s guess. It needs to start with MQM. The one that wields the most power needs to show the greatest maturity and unfortunately, MQM’s leadership has failed to do that. Their denials of Hussain’s arrest and asking the government of Pakistan to ensure his health and safety and provide legal help in the UK are childish. An obese man — 308 pounds at last count — is bound to have a few life-threatening diseases. A millionaire — source of income unknown — can afford for his well wishers in Karachi to foot the legal bill. It is a time of change and MQM needs to realise that political gamesmanship is not going to deliver results. More bad news from the foreign media will follow. They should brace themselves for the inevitable and come up with smart answers for an emotionally overcharged crowd. The party that has been in government for the last 14 years, and been in power for twice as long, needs to overhaul its political and administrative structure and manner of running the city.
The Urdu-speaking majority of Karachi also needs to take a long hard look at itself. Being held hostage is one thing, giving up your power and losing hope quite another. In the first thirty years of Pakistan’s existence, Urdu and Urdu-speakers were supported on institutional level even when the Bengalis were sidelined from every level of the governmental, bureaucratic and military setup. Still, the MQM was brought to the forefront to counter the post-Bhutto PPP influence. It is to Hussain’s credit that he succeeded in turning it into the powerhouse it is today. But the cost has been huge and has changed Karachi’s psyche forever. It is time to go back to basics. Karachi will never be weapons-free. Can it be hate-free? This is where the role of other political parties becomes important. It may seem like good sense to watch the debacle from the sidelines. It is not. Instead of playing the ethnicity card, the body-in-sack card, or carrot-stick card, the untainted elders of each provincial and federal party need to form a truth and reconciliation commission.
If Karachi has to be cleaned, then the process has to start from the top. Accept your party’s role in nurturing criminal wings. The big businessmen supporting the wings need to quietly drop them. There was a reason to pick sides, not anymore. The lines of good and evil have been irrevocably blurred in this country but the biggest threat remains terrorism. Let’s get rid of the small problems and fight the biggest one together as one people, if not nation. The armed forces can play a decisive role to ensure this. The print and broadcast media, already mistrusted by people, needs to rethink its policy of silence. It will need to be professional and outspoken about the Pandora’s Box that will open in the UK once formal charges are framed against Hussain. It will be time to ask hard questions and get better answers than “the money is from people who love Altaf bhai and we need it to celebrate his birthdays,” as given by senior party member to a TV channel last year. And some advice for the man who holds the fate of millions in his fist: forgive and forget. Let that be the end to the remarkable life journey of a boy from nine-zero — after all, Azizabad is long gone.
The writer is a freelance journalist and broadcast producer