Balochistan National Party (BNP-M) chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal on Wednesday ended his party’s sit-in at Lakpass in Mastung after 20 days, citing public inconvenience.
The BNP-M had initially announced a long march from Wadh to Quetta, commencing from March 28, to protest the incarceration of leaders of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, including its leader Mahrang Baloch. The long march had reached Lakpass before transforming into a sit-in, as security forces said they would not permit any sit-in in the provincial capital. Mengal then threatened to march on Quetta on April 6, but backtracked after authorities threatened him with arrest if he proceeded.
Addressing a press conference in Mastung, Mengal said he was ending the sit-in, but stressed the “movement” would continue. “We believe in a peaceful struggle. We are not ending the movement but will initiate a public outreach movement from today,” he said, stressing that the sit-in was only ending due to public inconvenience. To prevent the sit-in from proceeding to Quetta, authorities had blocked major arteries of Balochistan, hampering traffic and trade.
During his press talk, the BNP-M chief reiterated allegations of the provincial government expressing “helplessness” to commit anything to his party. He also alleged that he and his supporters were in “danger” at Lakpass and lamented that the state had blocked the progress of the long march.
According to Mengal, the BNP-M would now organize rallies and protests across Balochistan. “In the first phase, we would hold protest rallies in Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar and Surab. In the second stage, rallies would be held in Turbat, Gwadar and Makran,” he said.
The third phase of the protests, he continued, would proceed in the Nasirabad, Jaffarabad and Dera Murad Jamali districts, as well as other parts of Balochistan. He noted that an all-parties conference earlier in the week had also advised him to call off the sit-in.
On Monday, the all-parties conference organized by the BNP-M passed nine resolutions in a joint declaration. It called for the implementation of constitutional safeguards related to the 1948 Instrument of Accession of Balochistan to Pakistan and sought a national-level dialogue to resolve longstanding issues of the province.