WITH the death of Talal Akbar Bugti, chief of his own faction of the Jamhoori Watan Party, in Quetta on Monday, questions arise about what direction the Balochistan-based JWP — founded in 1990 by Talal’s father, Nawab Akbar Bugti — will take. Following the late Baloch leader’s assassination in 2006, the JWP split into at least three different entities, and it remains to be seen if the nationalist party can carve a place for itself in Balochistan’s complex current political landscape.

“Following Akbar Bugti’s death the party was split into three factions; one was the [banned] Baloch Republican Party, political wing of the BRA [Baloch Republican Army], led by Brahmdagh Bugti,” says veteran journalist Siddiq Baloch, adding that the other two factions were led respectively by Aali Bugti, Akbar Bugti’s grandson and successor as tribal chief, and the faction led by the late Talal.

Where Talal’s political standing is concerned opinion is divided. Some observers say he was active in Balochistan’s political scene and enjoyed good terms with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, especially the prime minister. Others, however, feel he could not establish himself as a political leader of standing following Akbar Bugti’s death.

Also read: Talal Bugti passes away

“Talal was not a political person. He never mobilised the masses or held any major political rallies, although some of Nawab sahib’s [Akbar Bugti’s] friends did follow him. But he held no public meetings,” says Siddiq Baloch.

Shahzada Zulfiqar, a journalist who follows Balochistan politics, agrees with this assertion. “Talal was not an entity until Nawab sahib was alive. Also, he never referred to himself as ‘nawab’,” he says, while adding that there appeared to be political differences between Talal and his sons, Shahzain and Gohram.

Regardless of Talal’s political stature, both factions of the JWP — his own and the Aali-led group — boycotted the 2013 general elections for various reasons. Aali claimed that the government was not letting the displaced Bugtis return to their native areas, while Talal said he did not have faith in the elections as, according to him, they were not free.

As for the future of the party, where the Talal-led faction is concerned, his son Shahzain has been most active politically, and observers agree he is likely to succeed his father as head of the party. The fact that he will occupy the Bugti residence in Quetta will also put him in the limelight. However Mr Zulfiqar, who feels Shahzain is on good terms with the military establishment, says the Bugti scion has two main choices before him: “It is likely Shahzain will lead the JWP. However, he can either work with Aali, or keep a separate entity. This will be a test case.”

Political observers also note that both factions of the JWP currently lack organisational strength, especially at the street level, with some going as far as to say that their politics is, at the moment at least, limited to issuing press releases. In order to become a relevant political force in Balochistan, the various Bugti factions will have to overcome significant internal family and clan differences to make the JWP a viable brand with roots in the masses and popular appeal.

The late Talal Bugti had talked about creating platforms for re-engaging the ‘angry’ Baloch — a euphemism often employed to refer to separatist elements — in order to bring them back to the mainstream. In fact, it was reported that a day before his death he had talked of forming a tribal jirga to approach the angry Baloch. Indeed whether it is to woo back the estranged Baloch, or to convince the people of Balochistan that they are serious about securing the province’s due rights, Talal’s party, and his successors, must first prove to their detractors that they are themselves united, and committed to working for the province and its people.

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2015

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