ISLAMABAD, June 15: The Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement (Ponam) has decided to hold country-wide protest demonstrations after budget session, to press the government to accept its demands viz-a-viz provincial autonomy and the rights of Balochistan.

Talking to Dawn on Wednesday, Balochistan National Party (Mengal) MNA Rauf Mengal said the Ponam leadership would meet in Karachi on June 21-22 under the chairmanship of the movement’s president, Sardar Ataullah Mengal, to work out a strategy for protests.

He said the protests were against the lack of finalization of the parliamentary committee report on Balochistan, Thal canal and Kalabagh dam projects.

Replying to a question, he said if Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti was a warlord and had set up a parallel government in words of President Gen Pervez Musharraf then why the government had sent its representatives to him in chartered flights.

He termed the calm in Balochistan a lull before a storm because the army and antagonist elements were maintaining a high alert. They were retreating from their positions but not leaving their posts.

He said that the federal budget was meaningless for Balochistan and the NWFP in the absence of NFC award, because they were facing difficulties in preparing budgets.

He said no welfare budget was possible with army in the ruling seat.