QUETTA: Balochistan’s Senior Minister and provincial President of the PML-N Sanaullah Zehri has said that five parties of the coalition government were holding consultations to contest the Senate elections jointly to end horse-trading in the province.

Talking to newsmen after a meeting with Jamhoori Watan Party chief Talal Bugti on Wednesday, Mr Zehri said he had come to know from media reports about alleged sale and purchase of votes in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhawa.

“I learned through newspapers that the price of one vote has reached Rs40 million to Rs50m in Balochistan.”

Also read: 184 candidates submit nomination papers for Senate elections: ECP

The two leaders discussed matters relating to the Senate elections, political developments and the law and order situation in the province and agreed to continue their consultations.

Mr Zehri said all political parties wanted to end the unhealthy trend of sale of votes and for that reason five partners in the ruling coalition were exploring the possibility of contesting the Senate election jointly.

The PML-N leader said he was holding talks with the JUI-F for fielding joint candidates. He said he was optimistic about eliminating the menace of horse-trading in the province.

He said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had recently assured Talal Bugti that steps would be taken to rehabilitate Bugti IDPs in their areas.

The JWP chief told newsmen that the prime minister had assured him that the IDPs issue would be resolved. But, he said, he had no confidence in Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch who, according to him, talked a lot and did little.

Mr Bugti said he was never against the Pakistan Army, but people like former dictator Gen retired Pervez Musharraf had defamed the army by killing his father, Akbar Bugti, and displacing thousands of Bugti tribesmen from their homes and committing other atrocities in Balochistan.

Published in Dawn February 26th , 2015

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