Mengal unhappy with Kakar’s selection

BNP-M chief writes to Nawaz, citing deeper rift with PML-N

ISLAMABAD:

The appointment of BAP Senator Anwaarul Haq Kakar as the interim PM-designate has “deepened the rift” between the PML-N and its coalition partner BNP-M, whose chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal on Sunday took to Twitter to pen a letter to the former ruling party’s supremo Nawaz Sharif, lamenting the actions of the politicians seeking the security establishment's support for the resolution of every problem in the country.

In his letter, the BNP-M chief regretted that political consultations were not held with the allied parties and it was the establishment's consultation that was relied upon.

He cited a previous letter sent to Nawaz on July 22, 2023, hoping that issues would have lessened by now, but instead, they had increased.

“Mian Sahib, what has befallen us might be our fate, but what’s surprising is that you people, after facing hardships, haven’t learned any lessons,” he wrote in his letter to the former three time premier.

“We remember the atrocities from [former military ruler] Gen Ayub to [ex-army ruler] Gen [retd Pervez) Musharraf. However, your party forgets the conspiracies and unconstitutional actions of Musharraf and (former army chief Gen (retd) Qamar Javed) Bajwa too quickly,” Mengal added referring to the state of Balochistan.

“Once again, you’re weakening democratic institutions by legislating in the dark without involving allies, thereby strengthening undemocratic powers,” the BNP-M chief continued.

Mengal warned Nawaz that legislation contrary to human rights would probably be used against him in the future, pointing to the laws and amendments hurriedly passed in parliament in recent days.

“[We know] because we, the residents of Balochistan, have not been considered as human beings since day one,” he highlighted.

He added that making decisions without the confidence of allies would only carry on the mistrust between larger and small provinces.

Referring to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the BNP-M chief wondered how the project would benefit the people of Balochistan.

Recalling the previous two tenures of the federal government – led by the PTI in 2018 and the PML-N in 2022 – Mengal wrote that laws were made and broken to protect their interests and pave the way for their future government.

However, he continued that when the people of Balochistan called for missing persons, it was apparently against the law.

The BNP-M chief regretted that the actual history of Pakistan's 76 years as a sovereign country was not available in the textbooks. He continued that if it was, maybe they could have learned from history. “But now we and you are answerable to history and will remain to do so,” he added.

Mengal wrote that Kakar’s appointment as the interim premier might not only put an end to his politics but Nawaz’s decision had also “created further distance between the two”.

The BNP-M had allied with the then-ruling PTI in 2018 before joining hands with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) to bring down former premier Imran Khan's government.

Since Imran's ouster in April 2022 through a no-confidence vote, the BNP-M has voiced its concerns over the PML-N-led coalition's policies, with Mengal hinting at parting ways with it on several occasions.

With input from APP