QUETTA, Sept 2: An all parties’ conference comprising ARD, Ponam and ANP has announced a series of protests over the next 10 days, including rallies for Sunday in addition to complete strikes in the province on Sept 6 and Sept 12 against what they termed was the disgraceful manner in which the body of Nawab Akbar Bugti was handled and intensification of the operation in Kohlu.

Addressing a press conference at the press club here on Saturday, Sardar Akhtar Mengal chief of BNP-M said that the APC meeting, which was held on Friday, had decided to continue the agitation till the government stopped the military operation, released all political workers and resolved the Balochistan issue politically.

Mir Hasil Bizenjo and Sardar Sanaullah Zehri of the National Party, Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani of People’s Party Parliamentarians, Abdur Rauf of Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, Khudadad Khan of Awami National Party and Ayaz Swati of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) also addressed the gathering.

Sardar Mengal announced that processions would be taken out on Sept 3 in Quetta and all district headquarters, strikes would be observed on Sept 6 and Sept 12, public meetings would be held on Sept 8, Sept 10 and Sept 14 in Loralai, Dera Murad Jamali and Khuzdar, respectively.

He said the meeting had also decided to make the APC rally in Quetta on Sept 17 successful.

Sardar Mengal said that Nawab Bugti’s 6.5-foot body could not be kept inside a 4.5-foot coffin, adding that he did not believe Nawab Bugti’s body had been buried in the Dera Bugti graveyard on Friday.

Mir Hasil Bizenjo said either the family members of Nawab Bugti or the four-party Baloch Alliance would file an FIR against President Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, Governor Owais Ghani and Chief Minister Jam Yousuf for killing Nawab Bugti, adding that if the police refused then the matter would be taken up in court.

Sardar Sanaullah Zehri, the chief of Jhalawan, condemned the government for what he termed insulting and disgracing Nawab Bugti’s body and said after the way it had gone about doing things, it should not expect the Baloch people to remain peaceful.

Nawabzada Lashkari Khan Raisani recalled that as an army ruler, Ayub Khan had killed Nawab Nauroz Khan, military dictator Yahya Khan had massacred Bengalis that resulted in secession of East Pakistan, another dictator had hanged Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the present autocratic ruler had killed Nawab Akbar Bugti.

Khudadad Khan said that the federation’s integrity now depended entirely on the people of Punjab, adding that it remained to be seen whether they chose to support the army oppression or expressed solidarity with the Balochs to overthrow the Musharraf government.