QUETTA, July 4: The first one-day convention of the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD), scheduled to be held here on Friday in connection with the mass contact campaign against the military government, has been cancelled.

ARD chief Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan and other leaders of the alliance’s component parties could not reach Quetta on Thursday as all PIA flights coming from Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore could not land at Quetta airport due to poor visibility.

The Nawabzada was due in city on Wednesday from Lahore to preside over the ARD leaders’ meeting here on Thursday but PIA flight coming from Lahore was cancelled as dusty winds blowing for the last three days lashed the valley and other areas of the province, resulting in the cancellation of the flights.

The special flight, which was due in Quetta from Lahore on Thursday, also could not land due to bad weather and PIA authorities cancelled the flight.

Balochistan President of the ARD Khuda-i-Noor formally made an announcement here about the cancellation of the ARD’s convention and the meeting of the chiefs of the alliance’s component parties.

He blamed the government for cancellation of all the flights “just to sabotage” the ARD mass contact programme.