QUETTA: National Party president Abdul Malik Baloch has said that the death of Sardar Ataullah Mengal is a great loss to nationalist politics which cannot be remedied as the late leader was one of the pioneers of the nationalist movement.

Dr Malik expressed these views while offering his condolences to Sardar Akhtar Mengal on the death of his father in Wadh on Sunday.

“His death has created a vacuum in the Baloch national movement which may not be filled,” he said.

Pakistan People’s Party’s central leader Gen retired Abdul Qadir Baloch said that Sardar Mengal practised politics of principles because he was a man of principles.

“He dedicated his entire life to the Baloch nation and the people of Balochistan. Of course, with his death, Balochistan has lost the leadership of an important person,” he said.

The chief of Jamaat-i-Islami, Balochistan, Maulana Abdul Haq Hashmi, said that due to sacrifices of Sardar Mengal, Balochistan had got a strong identity. “Sardar Mengal was the voice of not only Baloch but also of all the oppressed nations,” he said.

Expressing his condolences, Hafiz Hamdullah of JUI said that the void created by the death of Sardar Mengal may not be filled for centuries.

Published in Dawn, September 6th, 2021