QUETTA, July 20 Haji Liaquat Ali Mengal, a leader of the Balochistan National Party-M, was shot dead near his house in Kalat on Tuesday.

The killing of second BNP-M leader in a week — Habib Jalib Baloch was gunned down on July 14 — sparked protests in the provincial capital and activists of the party held a demonstration near the press club.

Addressing the protesters, BNP-M leaders Agha Hasan Baloch, Akhtar Hussain Lango and Ghulam Nabi Marri said the killings would fail to force the party leadership to abandon the struggle against 'usurpers'.

They said death of important leaders was a big loss but no nation could achieve its rights without rendering sacrifices. The leaders appealed to party workers and sympathisers to remain peaceful and said that anti-Baloch forces were provoking them to take the path of violence in order to weaken their organisation.