Bitterness festers as Balochistan CM remains undeterred

The deadlock between Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan and estranged members of Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) persisted on Wednesday as the 24-hour deadline given to the CM drew to an end.

The disgruntled ministers of the Balochistan government and lawmakers of the provincial assembly had on Tuesday given the chief minister a deadline to step down in a “dignified” manner, warning that otherwise, they would move a no-confidence motion against him.

Irked by the chief minister’s “stubborn” resistance to the demands seeking his resignation, five members of the cabinet on Wednesday decided to resign. The provincial cabinet members, including three ministers and two advisors to the chief minister, submitted their resignation letters to Balochistan Finance Minister Zahoor Buledi.

11 members of the provincial assembly, including one each from Balochistan National Party (Awami) and PTI, had moved a no-confidence motion against CM Kamal.

The estranged faction will now submit a no-confidence motion against the chief minister within the next two days.

READ Disgruntled Baloch MPs give CM Jam Kamal 24 hours to quit

“We have written our resignations, which would be submitted soon,” Asad Baloch, Minister for Social Welfare and Secretary-General of Balochistan National Party (BNP-Awami) said while talking to media on the premises of Balochistan assembly late evening.

Asadullah Baloch said: “Our group remains determined and will not back out from its stance. We allowed him [chief minister] a reasonable time to quit in a dignified way. But since that hasn’t happened, we are not willing to sacrifice the entire province just for one individual.”

Responding to a question, Baloch said that pro-CM members had approached the group once again to offer an olive branch and bridge the chasm through talks. However, he added, the dissidents were still adamant about their demands.

He said that the group members have already signed the no-confidence motion which would be tabled after more members sign on it. “Our group is gaining momentum with the required numbers of members flooding in to mount no-trust motion,” he said.

"We said that we have already given Jam Kamal three years, we can't spare any more time,” he added.
It is pertinent to mention here that earlier, following a meeting with Asad Baloch, the advisor to the chief minister, Mir Gorham Bugti had told the media that the provincial government was making efforts to hammer out a reconciliation deal with the disgruntled faction.

Meanwhile, Balochistan government spokesperson Liaqat Shahwani had claimed that the chief minister had the support of lawmakers, asserting that he will not resign.  Efforts to assuage the concerns of the dissidents will continue, he added.