QUETTA, Jan 18: Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal said on Thursday that the Baloch would have avoided going through the agony of receiving mutilated bodies of their loved ones had they too been provided the same support which was ensured to Dr Tahirul Qadri during his sit-in in Islamabad.

Talking to journalists by telephone from Dubai, Mr Mengal complained that Baloch people had always been given coffins of their loved ones whether there was a military regime or a civil government in the country.

He said had a Baloch leader held a sit-in similar to the one staged by Dr Qadri, the media and other quarters would have attacked that leader with scathing criticism, but no-one put any question to Dr Qadri who stayed in a well-furnished container while his supporters braved biting cold in the open during the four-day sit-in.

He said Dr Qadri in his fiery speeches held politicians and political parties responsible for corruption and other ills facing the nation, but he did not utter a single word against generals who had violated the Constitution and imposed martial law in the country time and again.—Staff Correspondent