Former Chief Minister of Balochistan, Nawab Aslam Raisani, has claimed that scholarships meant for students from Gwadar, Balochistan are being utilized by children of Punjabis.
In a conversation with journalists, the former Chief Minister stated that Baloch students are being forcibly disappeared from educational institutions, yet the blame is placed on tribal leaders.
Raisani said that there was a time when it was said that the Baloch people were enslaved by their tribal leaders and that the tribal leaders were against education. Today, Baloch students are being forcibly disappeared from educational institutions in Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi. He questioned, “Now tell me, who is really against education?”
Raisani further claimed that under the name of Gwadar projects, China provided scholarships to 7,000 Baloch students, but only 200 of them were actually from Balochistan.
He alleged that most of the scholarships given in the name of Gwadar were utilized to send Punjabi children to China and other countries, leaving Baloch students with limited opportunities for education.
He added that of the 200 students from Balochistan sent to China through these Gwadar scholarships, only a few were from Baloch areas, while the rest belonged to other ethnic groups from Balochistan.
He emphasized that as tribal leaders, they advocate for the rights of the Baloch people, but when children from other regions take advantage of their scholarships, it deprives their own people of education.
The former Chief Minister also mentioned that he believes the Baloch people have now become aware that Baloch tribal leaders are not against education. He argued that the longstanding propaganda against them is failing, and the Baloch nation now understands that their tribal leaders are fighting for the rights of their people.