QUETTA: Sardar Akhtar Mengal, President of Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal), and Mir Shafiqur Rehman Mengal have sought more time for consultation with tribal elders to authorise the reconciliation tribal delegation led by Chief of Sarawan tribes Nawab Aslam Raisani, after marathon rounds of negotiations held in Wadh over the last two days.

Nawab Raisani went to Wadh the other day with his tribal delegation to further progress in its efforts to find a way for reconciliation between both factions of the Mengal tribe.

Both sides had agreed to an indefinite ceasefire, honouring the tribal delegation and expressing their desire to resolve the issue according to tribal customs.

Though normalcy has returned in Wadh area after a four-day gun battle, in which seven people were injured from both sides, armed men from both factions are still positioned in their trenches with heavy automatic weapons.

“Both sides were strictly observing cease-fire for the last one week and not a single incident of exchange of fire took place so far,” a senior official of the Wadh administration told Dawn, adding that the reconciliation tribal delegation visited Wadh and held long negotiations with Sardar Akhtar Mengal and Mir Shafiq Mengal during the last two days and now it returned to Khuzdar.

Meanwhile, Nawab Aslam Raisani, after holding meetings with both sides, stated on Sunday that the meetings were encouraging and “we have sought full authority and mandate from both sides to make further progress in tribal efforts to resolve the issue on a permanent basis”.

However, he added that after negotiations, Sardar Akhtar Mengal and Mir Shafiq Mengal have sought some more time for consultation with their tribal elders to authorise the tribal delegation to resolve the issue according to tribal customs and values.

“I’m very hopeful that they will send a positive reply after consulting their tribal elders,” Nawab Raisani said, adding that the tribal delegation wants to avoid bloodshed, and they seek to resolve the issue through mutual understanding and dialogue, as “the people from both sides belong to us”.

He expressed the desire for complete peace to be restored in Wadh and stated that they are visiting Wadh for the second time to promote goodwill. He emphasised that they will return to Wadh again to establish peace and brotherhood.

Nawab Raisani said, “Today we heard the positions of both parties, and both sides responded positively. We are hopeful of resolving the problems of Wadh.”

The other members of the tribal reconciliation delegation include Ex-Senator Nawabzada Haji Lashkari Khan Raisani, Nawabzada Rais Khan Raisani, Sardar Zafar Gichki, Wadera Ghulam Sarwar Mosyani, and four other members nominated by both sides.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2023