February 24, 2007	Saturday	Safar 6, 1428

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QUETTA, Feb 23: Senior Vice-President of the Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal) Dr Jehanzeb Jamaldani, Arbab Nawaz Kasi and Ghulam Sarwar were released in Panjgur on the orders of the Balochistan High Court on Friday.

However, police arrested six more leaders and workers of the party in Sibi, party sources claimed.

A single-judge bench of the Balochistan High Court comprising Mr Justice Akhtar Zaman Malghani has declared the detention of six BNP leaders, including Prince Musa Jan Baloch, Waja Jehanzeb Baloch and Akhtar Hussain Lango (former MPA) under MPO-3 illegal and ordered their release.

According to Sajid Tareen advocate, acting president of BNP, police re-arrested Prince Musa Jan Baloch while Akhtar Lango and Waja Jehanzeb Baloch were not released, showing their arrest in some other cases.

The BNP-Mengal leaders had been arrested two months back in Panjgur while they were on their way to Gwadar in connection with the Lashkar-i-Balochistan march announced by them.

A petition had been filed in the Balochistan High Court challenging detention of the leaders under MPO-3. The judge after hearing the petition declared their detention illegal and ordered that the six be released.

The authorities concerned had shifted Akhtar Hussain Lango to Quetta from Panjgur while two other leaders of the party, former MNA Rauf Mengal and former MPA Akbar Mengal, were shifted to Zhob from the Khuzdar jail.

Mr Tareen said that he would file a bail application for Akhtar Hussain Lango in the Balochistan High Court on Saturday.

He said that police raided the residences of BNP-Mengal leaders in Sibi on Thursday night and arrested six of them. They include Yaqub Baloch, member central committee of the party; Ramzan Slachi, Sultan, Shafi Mohammad, Saifullah and Phunal.

He said that a leader of the JWP, Dr Bashir Azim, and Aslam Jatoi were also arrested in Sibi on Thursday night.

He condemned the arrest of party leaders and workers and said that such tactics could not force the BNP-Mengal to abandon its ongoing struggle launched for the protection of the coast and resources of Balochistan.