The Balochistan Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution against the presidential ordinance seeking to hand over the islands in Balochistan and Sindh to the federal government, demanding its immediate withdrawal.
Malik Sikandar Khan, the opposition leader in the Assembly, presented the bill before the house, seeking to neuter the said presidential ordinance by the Pakistani government.
Talking on the resolution, Khan said that taking over the islands of Sindh and Balochistan is unconstitutional as these islands belong to both two provinces. “The islands were not taken into confidence before issuing the presidential ordinance by the federal government”, he said. He said that the federal government will not be allowed to take over the islands.
Nasarullah Zerey of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party agreed with Khan, saying that the move was unconstitutional and that nobody could take over the islands without permission. He also expressed surprise over the silence of the Balochistan government.
Political parties of Balochistan vehemently opposed the ordinance immediately after it was presented before the house earlier in October. National Party termed it an “illegal step”, whereas the Baloch National Movement claimed that “plans are underway to seize Balochistan’s coastal belt and separate it from Balochistan.” National Party also staged a protest rally against the presidential ordinance in Quetta.
In the session on Thursday, Asghar Khan Achakzai of the Awami National Party accused the Pakistani government of trying to take over the resources of Balochsitan through the ordinance. After the failure of the 18th amendment, the federal government is attempting to finagle the resources of Balochsitan via the presidential ordinance, he said. Achakzai also maintained the center will not be allowed to take over the islands at any cost.
Finance Minister of Balochistan Zahoor Buledi also supported the resolution. Syed Ehsan Shah, Mir Ahmad Nawaz, Ahmed Shahwani and several other members of the house also spoke on the resolution, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the presidential ordinance regarding islands of Sindh and Balochsitan.