KARACHI, April 22: Members and workers of the National Party (NP) staged protest demonstrations in Lasbela and outside the Karachi Press Club on Monday over the grenade attacks on their public meeting in Turbat.

According to a party spokesperson, NP leader Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, provincial president Akran Dashti, Mir Azeem Jan Buledi along with their other regional and provincial leaders had attended the meeting but luckily escaped unhurt in the attack.

Central vice president of the National Party Engineer Hameed Baloch said that they wanted smooth holding of elections. “We demand that the militants behind the cowardly attack are caught and punished,” he said while expressing his surprise at the police’s attitude after the attack.

“The police have made no arrests and do not even seem interested in pursuing the matter,” he said.

“An open attack like this and that, too, in broad daylight on the National Party, the biggest political party in Balochistan, is like sabotaging the elections by keeping the biggest party away from contesting the elections. But the National Party will not back out of its promise to the people of Balochistan of working to solve their problems and getting them their rights. We have resolved to keep on working towards solving our people’s problems through the democratic system,” he said.

Central secretary general of the National Party Tahir Bizenjo said that the attack had exposed the intentions of the people responsible for holding the so-called free and fair elections.

“Instead of working towards improving the law and order situation they seem to be carrying out a personal agenda of giving freedom to militants. We demand that the government immediately arrest the culprits behind the attack and work on improving the law and order situation in Balochistan so that the people there can vote without any fear in a safe environment,” he said.

“We demand that the National Party heads and those contesting the elections are provided proper security. The attack at Dr Abdul Malik Baloch’s residence was also an attack on his privacy. It is something that goes against the way of the proud Baloch people,” he added.

Similar protests after the attack were also held in Quetta on Sunday and in Lasbela on Monday.