ISLAMABAD: Sardar Akhtar Mengal, chief of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), launched a blistering attack on the federal government on Friday, accusing it of turning a blind eye to the deepening crisis in Balochistan while projecting itself as a player on the international stage.
Addressing a press conference alongside Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Aain-e-Pakistan’s (TTAP) Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Allama Raja Nasir Abbas and others, Mengal took a sharp jibe at Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s reported visit to New York, questioning why officials were chasing global engagements while failing to resolve unrest at home.
With sarcasm, Mengal suggested that perhaps the interior minister had travelled abroad in search of a station house officer (SHO) who could somehow “fix” Pakistan’s mounting internal challenges.
“Perhaps our own SHOs are no longer capable enough, and help has to be brought from abroad,” he remarked, taking aim at what he described as the government’s failure to restore law and order, particularly in conflict-hit Balochistan.
The BNP-M chief said that despite repeated incidents of violence and unrest in the province, the authorities had shown little urgency in addressing the grievances of protesters staging demonstrations and sit-ins.
“Those who cannot even manage their own home have set out to resolve international matters,” he said, questioning the credibility of officials attempting to represent Pakistan abroad while domestic crises continued to worsen.
He said it was unfortunate that nations were being represented by people who, in his view, had failed to resolve problems within their own country.
Mengal alleged that political voices from Balochistan were routinely dismissed whenever they travelled to Islamabad and Lahore to highlight their concerns.
“Our words hurt them. But when our words hurt them, do they think the bullets fired at us have no effect,” he asked, warning that ignoring political grievances would only deepen public frustration.
He accused authorities of allowing violence, enforced disappearances and the targeting of political activists to continue in Balochistan, claiming that hardly a day passed without some part of the province facing unrest.
Calling for a serious political response to longstanding disputes, including those linked to Balochistan and Kashmir, Mengal warned that continued neglect could push matters beyond control.
“If the state wants to continue running things this way, then it can, but how long will it continue,” he said. “Everything wears down over time. We are human beings; our bones are not made of iron.”
The BNP-M leader also questioned what he described as a system of selective accountability, citing the imprisonment and legal troubles faced by opposition leaders and rights activists, including former prime minister Imran Khan, Dr Mahrang Baloch, former lawmaker Ali Wazir and lawyer Iman Mazari.
He challenged the authorities to identify even one individual – civilian or uniformed – who had been punished for violating the constitution.
“Tell me the name of even one person, uniformed or otherwise, who violated the constitution and received even one day’s punishment,” he added.
Mengal argued that political leaders facing prosecution had continued to seek relief through courts established under the country’s constitutional framework, rather than rejecting the country’s legal system.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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