Karachi: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain, who has lived in self exile in the UK for more than 23 years, withdrew his resignation on Monday after an overnight announcement on leaving the party leadership.

Hussain late last night addressed workers at the party headquarters and said he did not want to lead the party. In an emotional speech he told the workers that they should run the party on their own.

“I have decided to withdraw from the leadership after much pondering,” Hussain said.

“There was too much of bullying with me and that is going on unstopped,” he complained without accusing anybody or any office directly.

“I am too weak now to run the party and I feel feeble to carry the responsibly of the leadership,” he said and advised the party workers to choose a new leadership from within the party.

The workers, however, demanded that Hussain continue to lead them, saying they cannot run the party without him.

Newly-appointed member of MQM’s Central Executive Council (CEC) Aminul Haq told Gulf News that after earnest insistence of the workers Hussain consented to carry on as the party chief.

However, Haq said that there were many factors which compelled Hussain to take the position.

“There are many hidden hands and political leaders for whom Altaf bhai [brother] has been a formidable challenge,” Haq said. “The continuing discriminatory behaviour of the establishment and their attempts to marginalise MQM have been the factors which extremely upset Altaf bhai,” he said.

MQM remained in hot waters of late after contingents of paramilitary Rangers raided the party headquarters and arrested dozens of party workers and criminals hiding in the area. A huge quantity of weapons were also recovered.

The party denied that the criminals were its members. The weapons which were recovered from the party office were licensed and legal and the party later submitted the official documents in the court.

MQM was dealt another blow when Saulat Mirza, a former party worker, who had to be hanged the next morning, was shown on national television network claiming the murder he committed was ordered by Hussain.

The unprecedented leakage of video raised many questions as to how and by whom it could be brought out of the jail. The hanging of Mirza was also unprecedentedly deferred for a month.

The party rejected the claim as ‘absurd’, and described the move as a part of maligning MQM.