On 19 June 1992, an operation was held in Karachi by the Sindh Police and Pakistan Rangers, with additional assistance from the Pakistan Army and intelligence agencies.
MQM founder and leader Altaf Hussain has termed June 19 as a black day in the history of Pakistan. More than 18,000 workers were killed while thousands were arrested and brutally tortured.
According to Altaf Hussain, the ‘Operation-cleanup’ commenced against 72 big fishes, to put an end on the rising terrorism, but it targeted MQM specifically.
Operation ‘Clean-up’, also known as ‘Operation Blue Fox’, was an armed military intelligence program led by the Sindh Police and Pakistan Rangers, with an additional assistance from the Pakistan Army and intelligence agencies.
Its objective was to “cleanse” Karachi city of “anti-social” elements. The program targeted the Muttahida Qaumi Movement over the controversy regarding the Jinnahpur plan which supposedly planned on having Karachi break away from Pakistan.
Rise of MQM
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (denoted as MQM) was founded in 1984 by its activist leader, Altaf Hussain. The MQM had its support from President General Zia-ul-Haq since its very early foundation in a view to sideline the Jamaat-e-Islami in Karachi and PPP in rural Sindh although the claims have been dismissed by party leaders.
MQM took part in local government elections and 1985 general elections, initially becoming part of military–technocratic government. After death of President Zia-ul-Haq, MQM contested in 1988 general elections, acquiring considerable political leverage with 13 seats in parliament.
MQM was part of PPP-led government of Benazir Bhutto but went on to support the “vote of no confidence” against her. As early as 1988–89, the political problems in Karachi began to arise and reached its climax in 1990 when Sindh Police opened fire on Muhajir locality in Hyderabad city.
After coming in 1990 general elections, MQM demonstrated its political power in Sindh as part of the Islamic Jamhuri Ittehad government led by Nawaz Sharif.
During this time, violence arose with the disagreements between one faction led by Afaq Ahmed and Altaf Hussain of MQM but it was subdued.
Military operation
In 1992, an army-led operation in Karachi were concluded under the Director-General of Intelligence Bureau, Brigadier (retired) Imtiaz Ahmed codenamed ‘Operation Clean-up’.
The clean-up protocol was initiated under Imtiaz Ahmed and the Pakistan Rangers, focusing on taking measures against the dacoits in rural Sindh, not specific political parties. The program’s protocol was to last six months until June 1992.
The 1993 general elections saw Benazir Bhutto come in power. The programme was renamed “Blue Fox”. Among the reasons given were the Jinnahpur affair and the Major Kaleem Case in Karachi in 1993.
The anti-MQM operation continued into the new Benazir Bhutto government. The army’s search and destroy operation led to the discovery of arms caches and torture chambers in elsewhere in Karachi.
The gun and street fighting in Karachi increased the Muhajir-Sindhi violence. Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed directly reported to the government on the course of action.
In a press release in January 1994, Interior Minister Major-General (retired) Naseerullah Babar added in that “Operation Clean-Up” was likely to continue until June. The period is regarded as the bloodiest period in Karachi’s history, with thousands killed or have gone missing in the fighting.
Twenty years have passed since the alleged arrest or disappearance of MQM workers, families of the missing people are still hopeful after registering the cases in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
