At that time the MQM said that it was not in any way responsible for his business dealings. In 2013, he was sidelined by the party and a year later his basic membership was suspended indefinitely for violating party discipline. He was expelled from and then taken back into the MQM in 2009. He first returned to the country in 2007 - after remaining in self-exile for about 15 years. Mr Shahzad, who remained a member of the National Assembly in 19, had announced his return to Pakistan on Twitter on Sunday.
An antiterrorism court had declared him a proclaimed offender in the case in August last year. He, along with some other politicians, has been nominated in a case against former federal minister Dr Asim Hussain who was allegedly involved in treating and harbouring wounded suspects at his Dr Ziauddin hospitals. “The Karachi police formally arrested the MQM’s former leader, Saleem Shahzad, at the airport in the Dr Asim case,” said a brief statement issued by a police spokesperson. KARACHI: Former Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Saleem Shahzad was on Monday formally arrested as soon as he landed at Karachi airport from Dubai in a case in which he had been declared a proclaimed offender.