ISLAMABAD, Sept 19: The government said in Senate on Tuesday that it intended to resume dialogue with the Baloch nationalist leadership and appealed to opposition to persuade the militant Baloch segment to put down arms.

The opposition blamed the army for the situation in the province and demanded immediate withdrawal of forces from Balochistan and end to the political role of the army chief.

Winding up the five-day debate in the upper house of parliament on Balochistan, Minister of State for Interior Zafar Iqbal Warraich said no dialogue could be held at gunpoint. He asked the opposition to help the government to take up the process of reconciliation and healing, instead of politicking on the body of Nawab Akbar Bugti. The government also offered to conduct DNA test on Nawab Bugti’s remains.

Leader of Opposition Mian Raza Rabbani reminded the minister that it was a practice all over the world that the sitting government held dialogue with groups of terrorists, fighters and militants. But in this case, the government was shy of initiating talks with the Baloch people.

About the offer of the DNA test, he said the heirs of Nawab Bugti wanted that a test should be conducted under supervision of an international forensic team.

He offered opposition’s support to the government in persuading Baloch leaders to shun confrontation and come to the negotiating table, if it immediately stopped military action in Balochistan.

Mr Warraich alleged that the late Bhutto’s regime had bombed areas of Baloch resistance. It had dissolved the provincial assembly, while the present government avoided such an action although it was faced with a reign of terror with the blowing up of and attacks on a large number of national installations. Ferrari camps are being run and arms and cash are being received from abroad.

He said that 15,000 families had to take refuge in other provinces because of atrocities of Nawab Bugti who maintained personal jails. He recalled that after meeting Tariq Aziz and the governor of Balochistan in August 2004, the Baloch leader declared that a breakthrough had been achieved. However, hostilities were never stopped.

Taking part in the debate, Farooq Naik of the PPP Parliamentarians strongly criticised the role of army in Balochistan and said that the national army, presumed to be guardians of independence and people’s honour, was involved in the killing of Nawab Bugti who was not an ordinary person.

He termed the incident a national crisis of grave complications which had vindicated that Balochistan was not in control of the Baloch people.

He called for starting a healing process through the involvement of judicial and political forces but excluding the army since it no more enjoyed respect among the masses.

Prof Mohammad Ibrahim Khan of MMA regretted that the government had failed to provide justice to rape victim Dr Shazia because the rapist was an army official. The entire government, he said, stood up in his support failing to see its grave repercussions which are now being witnessed.