SUKKUR: Chief of Muttahida Qaumi Movement Altaf Hussain has called upon the Sindhis and the Muhajirs to launch a joint struggle against the Establishment, for achieving provincial autonomy for Sindh under 1940 Resolution of Lahore.

Addressing the newsmen of Khairpur, Sukkur and Ghotki on phone from London, Altaf urged the Muhajirs to learn Sindhi within a certain period. He said after the first and second world wars, European countries joined to form European Union. "Pakistan and India should join in the same way," he suggested.

He said that that the 1973 constitution had become outdated because it could not solve the problems. Despite its Article 6, the country had undergone military rule on a number of occasions, he added.

He that the country was griped by 'Khaki Wardi' and civil bureaucracy on its creation. He said that the murder of the first prime minister, Liaqat Ali Khan because the forces did not want to have a Muhajir prime minister.

He said that the investigations carried out by IG Special Branch Mirza Eitzazuddin in the killing of Liaquat Ali Khan was also sabotaged when he was killed in a "planned" air-crash along with entire inquiry record. He demanded re-investigation of Liaqat Ali Khan murder case.

Altaf called for the unity among Sindhis and Muhajirs "so that they could not fall prey to the 'Divide and Rule' policy of Establishment." He demanded a national army with equal representation from all the four provinces.

Altaf said Nawaz Sharif who had plundered the national wealth and was responsible for the killings of 300 Muttahida men, was allowed to leave the country but MPA Zulfiqar Haider was wrongly implicated in the Hakim Said murder case. Amirullah was also implicated in the said case but the Supreme Court, despite being contacted by Amirullah's mother, did not take suo moto action.

To question he said: "ARD (Alliance for Restoration of Democracy) is a gathering of looters," he said. To another question, he said if Benazir proved herself to be the daughter of Sindh, Muttahida is ready to struggle for Sindh progress along with her.

KARACHI: A businessman was kidnapped on Thursday by unknown-armed men riding who interceptedhis Toyota Corolla (AAJ-404) on Bakhsh Village Road in Gizri.

Hanif was going with his three friends who informed police. The police, however, denied the incident when contacted.

BURNS VICTIM DIES: Rubina, 20, daughter of Atta had received burn wounds in Khwaja Ajmer Nagri on Feb 6. She was taken to Abbasi Shaheed where she died.

SHO INJURED: The SHO Baloch Colony Inspector Shaukat Ali was injured by bandits while trying to resist them from snatching his motorcycle in his police limits.

LOOTED: Bandits looted cash and valuables from participants of a wedding party going in bus (JE-2446) near Al-Karam Square; cash and valuables from owners of three marble shops in Pak Colony; Rs 45,000 from Aga in Gulistan-e-Jauhar; Rs 6,000 from Khurram in Jauharabad; cash, goods and Suzuki Pick-up (KH-4075) from Amjad in PIB Colony; Rs 40,000 and valuables from a shopkeeper and his customers in Gizri; cash from Murtaza Ali's godown in Bughdadi; cash and computers from M Hanif's office in Ferozabad and Rs 150,000 from Behzad Aziz in North Nazimabad. Carjackers took away seven cars and 11 motorcycles from the city.

ACCIDENTS: Waseem, 30, his two friends Mukhtar and Iftikhar were injured when a speeding vehicle ran over their motorcycle near Malir City in Quaidabad police area.

DROWNED: Body of an unidentified drowned man of 30 was found in a Nullah near Munawwar Hospital in N-Nazimabad police limits. The MLOs of Abbasi Shaheed Hospital said it was two days old.

SMUGGLERS HELD: The CIA arrested arms smugglers M Aslam, M Akbar and M Husain from Shershah and recovered a Kalashnikov, two TT pistols and bullets from them. The police on information about them raided a house in Shershah police limits and arrested them.