QUETTA: The Baloch­istan High Court admitted on Friday a constitutional petition of the Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal) against holding of census in the presence of Afghan refugees in the province.

Justice Abdullah Baloch heard the petition filed by BNP-M leader Mir Ghulam Nabi Marri.

Mr Marri pleaded in the petition that his party had reservations over the census being held in the province in the presence of Afghan refugees.

He said that hundreds of thousands Baloch people had migrated to Sindh and Punjab because of poor law and order in the province and till the resolution of this issue, the census should be postponed.

The judge admitted the petition for regular hearing and issued notices to the Attorney General for Pakistan, the Advocate General for Balochistan and others.

Senior lawyer Jamil Ra­mzan and Agha Hasan Baloch appeared on behalf of the petitioner.

Published in Dawn January 21st, 2017