Re: Foundation of MQM
At the time MQM came to prominance in early 80s, several other Muhajir ethnic organizations also had come into being. Muhajir Ittehad Tehrik was another one that I could remember off hand. So there were/are genuine ethnic tensions and greivances in the society that MQM tapped into. It was more popular and successful than others because of speeches and charisma of Altaf Hussain. Another appeal he had at the time was his body guards and their guns. In the ethnic riots of early 80s MQM gained more popularity as it was the only group that came across as prepared enough (in the post Afghan war free-for-all gun culture) to tackle the ground realities (no security provided by government). Whether Altaf Hussain got his guns, his body guards, his contacts with GM Syed, etc. on his own or with government's help, we don't know.
For conspiracy theorists, the timing of propping up of these Muhajir organizations and the insecurity created by organized attacks and massacres of entire localities and the government's apathy towards that climate is enough as a proof. I personally would like to believe that it was not a conspiracy. I suer hope all those people were not killed, homes and lives destroyed just to create an atmosphere of fear by ISI where groups like MQM would succeed. MQM is still popular because the ground realities have not changed much since that time.