Pak's MQM founder Altaf Hussain hospitalised in London after 'severe illness'

London, Jul 11 (PTI ) Pakistan's Muttahida Qaumi Movement founder Altaf Hussain, living in London in self-imposed exile since 1992, has been hospitalised following "severe illness", a party official said.

Hussain, 71, was taken to the hospital on Thursday due to severe illness, where various tests were conducted, Mustafa Azizabadi, Convener of MQM’s Central Coordination Committee, said on social media on Thursday.

"The founder and leader of MQM, Altaf Hussain, has been admitted to a hospital in London due to severe illness, where various tests have been conducted on him,” Azizabadi said.

“Doctors have conducted various tests and are focusing their attention on his treatment,” Dawn quoted him as saying in a video message on social media.

Hussain has been living in London since 1992 and currently possesses British citizenship, it added.

Hussain regularly broadcasts political speeches to his followers in Karachi through social media.

Previously known as the Muhajir Qaumi Movement, Hussain founded his party in 1984 to represent the Urdu-speaking community, which had migrated to Pakistan from India during the 1947 partition.

Born on September 17, 1953, in Karachi, Hussain began his political journey by founding the All-Pakistan Muhajir Students Organisation (APMSO) in 1978.

His party MQM swept the 1988 election in Sindh’s urban areas, emerging as the third-largest party in the country, Dawn reported.

He went into self-exile in early 1990s as the government at the time conducted an operation in Karachi, it added. PTI RD ZH RD RD RD