ISLAMABAD, Feb 8: Irrespective of their political affiliation, all members of the Senate on Wednesday walked out of the house in protest against the recent target killing in Karachi of the wife and daughter of a Balochistan assembly member, Mir Bakhtiar Domki.

The walkout was led by Shahid Hassan Bugti, a relative of the dead.

“It (the killing) was a message for certain people,” Mr Bugti said just before storming out of the house. “The perpetrators are those who continue to kidnap people in Balochistan and throw away their mutilated bodies.”

He said some people were suggesting that a family feud or rivalry between two tribes could be behind the incident and added that in Balochistan attacking womenfolk was unheard of.

According to Mr Bugti, first the daughter of Mr Domki was gunned down. The assailants then grabbed Mr Domki’s wife by her hair and pulled her out of her car. She was then shot in her face.

“The manner in which she was killed shows utter hatred towards the Baloch,” Mr Bugti remarked.

It was not a random case of violence. “Had it been such a case, a maid who was accompanying the two victims would not be alive today.”

He then asked all the Senators “with conscience” to join him in a walkout.

With one Senator after the other walking out of the house, Chairman Farooq H. Naek was forced to adjourn the proceedings for 20 minutes.

After the break, the house began discussing the law and order situation in Balochistan. Members belonging to all the parties represented in the house urged the government to take concrete steps for restoration of peace in the largest province of the country.

They said the root cause of the problem should be addressed so that sustainable and durable peace could be restored in the province.

Earlier, during the question hour, Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar told the house that PIA suffered a loss of Rs1.88 billion due to a protest by pilots and other employees last year. He said flights remained suspended for four days in February 2011, directly affecting 56,000 passengers.

Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour said the rail tracks in the country were not of international standard because these were laid more than 100 years ago. He said work on improving the tracks was under way.