QUETTA, April 28: Leaders of three main political alliances — the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD), Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement (PONM) and Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) — announced here on Sunday evening to observe shutter-down strike in Balochistan on April 30, against the presidential referendum.

The announcement came at a joint public meeting of the alliances here at Ayub Stadium.

PONM acting chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai presided over the public meeting as provincial leaders of the other component parties also spoke on the occasion.

A number of resolutions was also adopted in the meeting through which the referendum and army’s role in the Constitution vis-a-vis the formation of the Security Council was rejected.

The resolutions pertaining to the boycott of the referendum and a vow to continue the struggle for the restoration of democracy and the Constitution and the supremacy of parliament were also passed.

Achakzai condemned the holding of referendum, and said it was “unconstitutional and illegal.” If the people wanted to save the future of Pakistan, he went on to say, all the political parties had to unitedly boycott the referendum and observe complete strike on April 30.

“No shop should open on the day of the referendum and the people must stay at their homes,” Achakzai said.

Referring to the ousting of elected governments in the country, PONM acting chairman held the army and the civil bureaucracy responsible for all the wrongs that had been afflicted upon the country in the past.

Once again, through the formation of the NSC in the name of check on the performance of the prime ministers and their governments, he stressed, the rulers were paving the way for determining a constitutional role for the army.