DERA MURAD JAMALI: The Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) will continue to struggle for the legitimate rights of the Bugti tribe and approach the Supreme Court in this regard soon, said the party’s central president Nawabzada Shahzain Bugti on Thursday.

Speaking at a public meeting amid tight security, Mr Bugti said that hundreds of Bugti tribesmen had been sacked from the Uch gas field and other national institutions without any justification.

The party’s secretary general Ibrahim Lehri, Syed Saleh Agha, its Punjab President Mian Arshad and other party leaders also spoke at the gathering.

“Our party believes in a democratic struggle and has adopted the democratic way to pursue our demands,” said Mr Bugti, adding that the gas being produced in Dera Bugti was keeping the entire country warm and it was unfair that the “owners” of the gas were not getting an uninterrupted supply at home or in the district.

“They are still burning wood to cook their food even though a gas pipeline runs through their villages,” the JWP president claimed, adding that as Pakistanis it was the right of the Bugti tribesmen to gain access to a steady gas supply.

According to Mr Bugti, his party had tried to accelerate its struggle for the rights of Bugti tribesman and had decided to file a petition in the apex court to achieve the goal. He said the party would continue to struggle for the rights of the Bugti tribe who were deprived of jobs.

“Despite making promises, the government did nothing to settle the tribespeople who were displaced during military operations in the area and had to move to Sindh or Punjab,” he said. Mr Bugti added that steps should be taken to bring these families back home.

He also announced that the JWP would contest the upcoming general elections.

Published in Dawn, January 5th, 2018