ISLAMABAD: Criticising Islamabad’s dialogue process with Taliban militants, former chief minister and Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief, Sardar Akhtar Mengal on Saturday lamented that the government considers the Taliban as their own and treats the Balochs as outsiders.
Speaking to BBC Urdu, he said ongoing peace talks with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) indicate the difference of attitude.
“They (government) consider Taliban as their own…. Hence talks and reservations…. We are just outsiders.”
The BNP-M chief warned that his party would resign from the treasury benches of the Parliament in case, what he described as, killing of Baloch youth and their enforced disappearances was not stopped by security forces.
He said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has also been apprised about his party’s decision in a meeting on Friday.
“The prime minister has assured that 2014 will be a year of change for Balochistan and political betterment will be visible,” said Mengal.
The Balochistan MPA said that he, however, has apprised the premier that while they await positive change in the province, his party might not be able to linger for the whole year and might disassociate itself from the National and provincial assemblies.
Ending his four-year-long self-imposed exile, Sardar Mengal participated unconditionally in the 2013 polls. His party won a National Assembly and two Balochistan Assembly seats in the May 11 general elections. After hurling rigging allegations initially, he subsequently accepted the poll results in protest.
The senior Baloch politician showed his disappointment saying the expectations he pinned to the government of PM Sharif have not been fulfilled.
“In comparison to previous regime, when mutilated bodies were found separately, the current government has provided a great facility to the masses by discovering mass graves…so that loved ones of the dead find it easy to bury them,” said the disgruntled Baloch leader in his characteristic tone.
Replying a question over efforts to engage the separatists in the dialogue process, he said when the Balochistan government is not having dialogue with him being in Islamabad and Quetta, then how could they engage the armed rebels hiding in mountains.
Mengal ruled out possibility of playing the role of a mediator between the government and the disgruntled Balochs in the future.