LONDON: The Metropolitan Police have requested a two-week delay before deciding if they will try to confiscate cash found in the MQM`s UK headquarters and the London homes of Altaf Hussain and the businessman Sarfraz Merchant.

The police found £167,525.92 in the MQM`s offices in London and a further £289,785.32 in Mr Hussain`s home. A smaller sum around £30,000 was found in Mr Merchant`s home.

Just two weeks ago Scotland Yard said it would be ready to make a decision on the assets by Oct 5. But it now says it needs until Oct 19 to review new documents sent by the Pakistani authorities.

The MQM did not respond to Dawn`s request for a statement but Mr Merchant said he was challenging the request for more time.

`These [are a] government ofPakistan`s written in Urdu delaying tactic. The UK authorities should make a decision,` he said.

The possible confiscation of assets is a separate issue to the broader money laundering case. In April, the police submitted evidence of suspected MQM money laundering activities to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

That file is still with the CPS which is yet to decide if the evidence is strong enough for charges and a trial.

Asset confiscations require a lower burden of proof than money laundering charges and sources close to the UK investigation have said that whatever happens in the money laundering case, the police will, at some point, seek to conñscate the assets they have found.

Although the money laundering case and the proceedings concerning the assets are distinct legal processes, the police did link them in July when they told a UK court that they didn`t want to proceed with the asset issue because they would then have to present evidence that could compromise the main money laundering case.