ISLAMABAD: Akhtar Mengal, the chief of the eponymous Balochistan National Party (BNP-M), on Tuesday resigned from the National Assembly, citing frustration and lack of freedom in parliament as well as the apathy of lawmakers towards insecurity faced by the people of Balochistan.

Incidentally, his plan­ned announcement to resign from the lower house met a dramatic end as members present in the house pointed out the lack of quorum in the National Assembly even before he could utter a sentence.

Subsequently, Akhtar Men­gal announced his res­ignation in a media talk outside the Parlia­ment House. Talking to Dawn, the BNP chief said the business of the house was being run through ‘Form 47’, an allusion to the establishment’s role in the affairs of parliament.

“Well, the angels must have guided the members, and they are blatantly taking guidance from them as the quorum was pointed out as soon as I stood up in my seat,” he said. “All sides agreed to adjourn the session for one day — because they cannot listen to the ground realities in Balochistan,” the nationalist politician claimed.

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“This is pathetic, our daughters and elderly women are protesting and spending nights in the open only to highlight their concerns but no one in the entire assembly is even bothered to ask a question or raise a point of order in the house,” he said, calling the National Assembly “a fake gathering of legislators”.

“The people are suffering because of terrorists. The politicians, judiciary and the military, all are responsible for bringing sufferings to the masses,” Mr Mengal said, adding: “I do not see any point to remain in the assembly where we cannot speak against the system that is breeding terrorism in Balochistan.”

Mr Mengal was elected as an MNA from Khuzdar (NA-256) in the February 8 elections. He was also elected as an MNA in 2018.

He had also served as the chief minister of Balochistan.

Speaking to media outside the Parliament, Mr Mengal acknowledged that thousands of voters would be upset with him but he apologised to them. He recalled his meeting at the Prime Minister’s House on July 23, where he had conveyed that if there was no need for him in politics, he would quit.

Resignation letter

In a typed resignation letter to the National Assembly speaker, the BNP chief said that the “prevailing situation in Balochistan has compelled me to take this step”.

“Our province has consistently been marginalised and ignored by this house. Each day, we are pushed further against the wall, leaving us with no choice but to reconsider our roles.”

The resignation added that the lack of genuine representation in this assembly for the people of Balochistan “has left voices like mine unable to bring meaningful change”.

“It has become increasingly clear that our attempts to speak or protest are met with hostility, our people are either silenced, labelled as traitors, or worse, killed. Under such circumstances, I find it impossible to continue in this capacity, as my presence here no longer serves any purpose for the people I represent.”

Requesting the NA speaker to accept his resignation, the BNP-M chief expressed the hope for Balochistan to “be protected and prosper”. Incidentally, the resignation to the speaker has been typed but the rules state that it should be handwritten.

In response to a query that if his resignation was turned down on this ground, Mr Mengal said he would forward a set of handwritten resignations [to the speaker] even in Balochi.

Meanwhile, in a post on X, Mengal termed his resignation a “tribute” to his father, BNP founder Sardar Attaullah Mengal.

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“On the third death anniversary of my father, Sardar Attaullah Mengal, I resign as a member of parliament as a tribute to him,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

On the other hand, the Jhalwan Awami Panel, political rivals of the BNP-M, said through his resignation, Mr Mengal was trying to get the attention of nationalist groups, such as the Baloch Yakjehti Committee led by Dr Mahrang Baloch.

Its spokesperson Nadeemur Rehman Mengal claimed that the BNP-M had lost public support, adding the nationalist party could not even organise a reasonable gathering on the occasion of the death anniversary of Sardar Attaullah Mengal on September 2.

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2024