The Muhajir Province is a proposed province in pakistan for the ethnic muhajir people. Muhajirs who migrated from various states of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

towards the

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

during the Partition of

in 1947. Majority of the Muhajirs which is then settled in

sindh province Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

due to the hospitality of the Sindhi peoples.This movement is backed by a Muhajir pan-nationalist political and ethnic movement seeking to establish a separate province in

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

which seeks to represent the

Muhajir people Muhajir or Mohajir ( ar, مهاجر, '; pl. , ') is an Arabic word meaning ''migrant'' (see immigration and emigration) which is also used in other languages spoken by Muslims, including English. In English, this term and its derivatives may refer ...

. Muhajir province will consist of Muhajir-majority areas of

which would either be autonomous or either independent from

Sindh government The Government of Sindh ( sd, حڪومت سنڌ) ( ur, ) is the provincial government of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Its powers and structure are set out in the provisions of the 1973 Constitution, in which 30 Districts of 7 Divisions un ...

History

In 1954, the Muhajir Politician Mahmud-ul-Haq Usmani proposed the Muhajir Province and demanded Karachi as an separate province for Muhajirs. This idea was later revived by Muhajir nationalist Politician Altaf Hussain the founder and leader of

Muttahida Qaumi Movement Muttahida Qaumi Movement (abbreviated MQM) is a name currently claimed by two competing Pakistani political factions: * Muttahida Qaumi Movement – London, a political faction managed from the UK * Muttahida Qaumi Movement – Pakistan Muttah ...

(MQM) which is currently active as an

Muttahida Qaumi Movement – London The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ( ur, , ), previously known as Muhajir Qaumi Movement, is a secular political party in Pakistan that was founded by Altaf Hussain in 1984. Currently the party is split between 2 main factions. MQM-London facti ...

(MQM-L).

Ethnic violence

Since 1954 the tensions raised between the

Sindhis Sindhis ( sd, سنڌي Perso-Arabic: सिन्धी Devanagari; ) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who speak the Sindhi language and are native to the province of Sindh in Pakistan. After the partition of British Indian empire in 1947, man ...

and Muhajirs over province as both are the main ethnic groups of

karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

, the Sindhi nationalists strongly opposed the Muhajir Province movement and in 1988 thousands of Muhajirs killed in

Hyderabad, Sindh Hyderabad ( Sindhi and ur, ; ) is a city and the capital of Hyderabad Division in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the second-largest city in Sindh, and the eighth largest in Pakistan. Founded in 1768 by Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro of th ...

by Sindhi nationalists for demanding separate province in

. Altaf Hussain blamed

Pakistani establishment The Establishment in Pakistan refers to the deep state cooperative federation of the Pakistan Armed Forces, the Pakistani intelligence community and other pro-military government officials and civilians. Responsible for various military coups ...

and Pakistan's main intelligence agency for orchestrating the massacre he believed that the Sindhi nationalists are sponsored by establishment to suppressed the muhajir province movement, however the government denied the allegations of Altaf and condemned the massacre.

Mystery Movement (2012)

In 2012 there was an unexplained, mysterious, political development in Karachi, and partly in Hyderabad, where a hitherto unknown organisation has started a campaign for the creation of a separate province. It began with some wall chalking (graffiti) on the main thoroughfares for a ‘muhajir suba’.

State operation against MQM for promoting violence against state

On 11 March 2015,

Pakistan Rangers The Pakistan Rangers ( ur, ) are a paramilitary federal law enforcement organization in Pakistan, operating under the authority of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan. Their primary purpose is to secure and defend sites of significance in the ...

carried out a raid at Nine Zero, the headquarters of MQM in

Nine Zero Nine Zero (نائن زیرو) was the name given to the headquarters of Pakistan's political party, Muttahida Qaumi Movement founded in 1984. It was located in Azizabad, a sub-division of Federal B. Area, Karachi. The house was constructed on ...

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

as well as the party’s public secretariat, Khursheed Begum Memorial Hall, recovered small and heavy weapons and arrested over 100+ activists of MQM. In August 2016, after the Altaf Hussain's 22 August hate speech against Pakistan leds riots and unrest the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...

declared MQM as an proscribed party and

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

launched crack down on the party leadership and party headquarters in

was sealed by

and

the party's leaders including

Farooq Sattar Muhammad Farooq Sattar (; born 9 April 1949) is a Pakistani politician who is the founder & former leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, who split it from MQM founder and leader Altaf Hussain, he announced separate faction after rel ...

were arrested and disappeared by Pakistan Rangers and intelligence agencies, and most elected parliamentarians in the MQM were forced to disassociate themselves from Altaf Hussain. MQM-L terminated the

's party membership for party rules violations,which resulted in him forming his own separate "establishment-sponsored" party faction Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) after release from custody by the

. MQM-P also supports the idea of Muhajir Province through peaceful and democratic struggle opposing violence.

References

Politics of Sindh Political movements in Pakistan Muhajir politics Muttahida Qaumi Movement {{Pakistan-stub