Adviser to the Balochistan Chief Minister on Finance Dr Ruqayya Saeed Hashmi on Sunday confirmed she had resigned from the post after the use of abusive language against her by a parliamentarian following differences over the budget.
Sources close to Hashmi, quoting her, told DawnNewsTV that a senior parliamentarian had used abusive language against her over development schemes in the recently announced budget.
In a telephonic conversation with DawnNewsTV, Hashmi said: "Position is not more important than dignity."
The provincial government has not yet accepted her resignation from the key portfolio.
Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Quddus Bizenjo and a few other ministers have contacted her to withdraw her resignation, but she has turned down their requests.
Dr Hashmi's resignation may prove to be a blow to the Bizenjo-led government, creating obstacles in the passage of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Dr Hashmi, who announced the Balochistan budget for 2018-19, had said at a post-budget presser that the Finance Department had been forced to reduce the development budget by Rs10 billion in order to clear pension bills, the increasing amount of which has been a massive financial burden for the provincial government.