Claim: Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) protesters chanted “Pakistan Murdabad” during a sit-in in Karachi.
Fact: This caption of the post makes a false claim. The video shows MWM protesters actually chanting slogans against the US, saying “Amreeka Murdabad”.
On 2 January, X user @Mati__ur_rehman shared a video (archive) of MWM’s sit-in showing a protest leader chanting “murdabad” (death), and wrote, “پاکستان مردہ باد کہنے پہ کچھ ٹائم پہلے کراچی میں ایک بہت بڑی *سیاسی جماعت اور اس کے بانی و قائد* پر پابندی لگائی گئی تھی اب یہ لوگ نمائش پہ کھلے عام پاکستان مردہ باد کے نعرے لگا رہے ہیں ان کے ساتھ بھی کچھ ہوگا یا دشمنی صرف *الطاف حسین* سے تھی۔۔۔۔
دیکھتے ہیں انے والے وقت میں ☝️”
[Translated from Urdu: Some time ago, a very big *political party and its founder and leader* were banned in Karachi for saying “Death to Pakistan”. Now these people are openly shouting slogans of “Death to Pakistan” at exhibitions. Will something happen to them too or was the animosity only towards *Altaf Hussain”…
Let’s see in the future ☝️]
Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) sit-in
In December, Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) organised sit-in protests in Karachi to show solidarity with those affected by the sectarian violence in Kurram District. These demonstrations led to the closure of key routes, including University Road and the main M.A. Jinnah Road near Numaish Chowrangi, both sides of Abul Hasan Isfahani Road, and the road in front of the Super Highway, creating challenges for commuters. Five Star Chowrangi was also completely shut down, Aaj News reported.
According to Arab News, on Tuesday, 31 December, police moved against the central MWM protest camp at Numaish Chowrangi after days of complaints about the city’s near standstill, triggering clashes during the crackdown. “Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi is among many wounded in the police attack,” MWM spokesperson Ahmer Naqvi told Arab News. Before this, police and paramilitary Rangers used tear gas to disperse protesters and cleared Abul Hasan Isfahani Road near Abbas Town and Kamran Chowrangi in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, the report added.
Addressing a press conference, Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi condemned the police action and vowed that the group would not only continue its sit-in but also expand it to other parts of the city. Arab News also reported that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah took notice of protesters setting vehicles on fire and directed the police to improve the situation in the city.
According to The Express Tribune, on 2 January, MWM leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas announced the end of nationwide sit-ins and protests following a peace agreement between warring factions in Kurram District.
Fact or Fiction?
While the captions of the viral post claims that MWM protesters chanted “Pakistan murdabad” during a demonstration in Karachi, we do not hear any such slogans chanted in the accompanying video.
In fact, the video begins with a protest leader chanting, “Murdabad, murdabad, murdabad” [Death to, death to, death to], and people responding, “Amreeka murdabad” [Death to America]. The leader then goes on to chant, “Jo Amreeka ka yaar hai” [Whoever is a friend of America], and the crowd responds, “Ghaddaar hai, ghaddaar hai” [Is a traitor, is a traitor]. He continues, “Takfiri ka yaar hai, ghaddaar hai, ghaddaar hai” [Whoever is a friend of an apostate, is a traitor, is a traitor].
The leader adds, “Yeh na-muraad yaar hai, takfiriyon ke agenda pe aaj isne Hussainiyon ko tang kiya hai” [This wretched friend has troubled the followers of Hussain today to fulfill the agenda of the apostates].
He then resumes chanting, “Jo takfiri ka yaar hai” [Whoever is a friend of a Takfiri], and the people respond with, “Ghaddaar hai, ghaddaar hai” [Is a traitor, is a traitor].
At no point in the clip does anyone chant ‘Pakistan murdabad.’
We conducted a keyword search to investigate the claim further but found no credible news reports about MWM raising slogans of “Pakistan Murdabad” at their recent sit-in.
Virality
The claim was shared widely across Facebook including here, here, here, here, here, and here. Archived here, here, here, here, here, and here.
On X, it was shared here, here, here, here, here, and here. Archived here, here, here, here, here, and here.
It was also shared here, here, here, and here on Threads.
On Instagram, it was shared here and here.
Conclusion: The claim in the caption is false. The accompanying video does not show MWM protesters chanting “Pakistan Murdabad”. In fact, we can hear them raising slogans against the US.
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Background image in cover photo: Facebook@MWMKHI110
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