HYDERABAD, Jan 19: Provincial president of the People's Party Parliamentarians Syed Qaim Ali Shah has warned that an army operation in Balochistan would have disastrous consequences and said that all contentious issues should be resolved through a dialogue with Baloch leaders.

He was speaking at a reception hosted by Sindh People's Students' Federation leader Aajiz Dhamrah here on Tuesday. Supporting the struggle and demands of the people of Balochistan on behalf of his party, Mr Shah said that the PPP would not leave them alone. He added that excesses against the people of Balochistan would have disastrous consequences.

The PPP leader demanded that all the provinces should be given equal rights. Welcoming more than 24 lawyers who announced joining the PPP at the reception, he said that the party leadership had given sacrifices in the cause of democracy and the people.

He added that it was the only party which could bring about democratic and political changes in the country. Speaking on the occasion, the divisional president of the Peoples Lawyers' Forum, Choudhry Basheer Gujjar, said that the PPP leaders were not interested in government posts. Others who spoke on the occasion included a leader of the Peoples Lawyers' Forum, Allah Bachayo Soomro and Mr Dhamrah.