All these Baloch warlords Nawabs, Khan and Sardars are same, with a typical Sardari mentality. They use the ordinary middle class Baloch for their interest and when times come they will discard them like they are no body. Time has come that the ordinary Baloch must join hand and ditches these all Nawabs, Khans and Sardars and sends them all in one big grave.

Akhtar Mengal Returns from Self-Exile – 22 Mar. Akhtar Mengal announced he would return from Dubai and participate in elections. He refused to condemn his brother Javed Mengal who is sitting inLondon under MI6 patronage and carrying on militancy. Brahmdagh Bugti also announced boycott of the elections saying ‘Baloch are not part of Pakistan’. Akhtar being the son of Attaullah Mengal is also fiercely anti Punjab and anti Army like his father. He and his father never protested against target-killings of some 1600 Punjabis during the last 5 years but go on protesting that thousands of Baloch are missing and agencies have been killing them. Attaullah, as Chief Minister, had dismissed and repatriated Punjabi teachers and all the Police in 1972. But Nawaz Sharif is bending over backwards to befriend them. Incidentally, Mengal are Brahuis and not Baloch. They are a different racial stock and speak an ancient dialect called Brahui which has no script and negligible literature. On arrival, he met the CM and demanded the ouster of FC and Army from Balochistan. He demanded personal security by named individuals and the CS complied.

With the politician-rulers remaining busy in massive corruption, the bureaucracy has also abdicated its responsibility to run their departments. This is the state of all the departments – health, education and law and order are not the only areas suffering neglect; even the administration of justice has collapsed. The Baluchistan High Court as well as the Supreme Courts routinely interfere and try to run the departments without much success as it is not their job. Instead, they should haul up the politician-rulers and award exemplary punishments to civil servants for failure to justify their appointments and salaries.

The Baloch/Brahui activists are now focused on election and securing of their ‘rights’. There is no talk of ‘Independence’, other than by those five who are sitting abroad under patronage of CIA/MI6 in Europe. Incidents of target killings, sectarian killing, IEDs and crime have greatly reduced but people do not still feel safe, especially while going to Baloch/Brahui areas.

Zardari’s hurried signing of Iran-Pak Gas Pipeline and allowing regularization of smuggled vehicles during the last days of the PPP government, while doing some good, is seen as a cynical ploy to garner support which may fail in its political purpose but are nevertheless welcome because of being of long range public benefit.

The selection of weak persons as caretaker CM and PM is viewed as effort to avoid heat of controversy. Their weakness and inexperience of administration may end up doing good as the focus would remain on fairness of elections. While a majority in Balochistan would have liked the caretakers to haul up the criminals of the former government and do something assertively to ensure writ of the government, they can be content and comfortable if the bureaucracy and the Army were unhindered in their statutory roles of efficient administration and stern enforcement of law and order. The people are happy that neither the Governor nor the departing CM were able to get their candidates appointed caretaker CM. Nothing much is expected from the caretaker CM except that he appoints impartial officials of good repute in administration.

The rush of the JUI F, PML (N) and (Q), ANP and several others to join the Opposition one day before the tenure of PA came to an end, further brought down the dignity and prestige of the MPAs. They announced with a poker face that they had decided to leave the Treasury Benches for the good of the people. The people in their response used quite a foul language for the quality and character of all the MPAs. With no accountability of the regime in sight, all the former MPAs have filed their papers to be re-elected.

This election is presenting two broad possibilities; both directly dependent upon the party which might form the federal government. One: Aslam Raisani type corrupt administration coming into power again through massive horse-trading; two: Akhtar Mengal becoming the CM through lack of far sight in PML(N) leader, and support of RAW/CIA/MI6. The First possibility will almost immediately take the province back to loot, plunder and lawlessness – worse in every facet of civic-life this time with more crime, more corruption, and more slogans for ‘independence’.

Akhtar Mengal as the CM appears to be the preference of the Establishment which is being viewed with great optimism. That will result in strengthening the separatists sitting abroad pursuing the US Agenda of destabilizing Pakistan. India will be overjoyed and the Baloch/Brahui militants’ camps in Afghanistan will get a new lease of life. Akhtar and his father Attaullah Mengal are known Punjab/army and Pakistan haters. They have never condemned the target killings of Punjabis in Balochistan nor ever declared their allegiance to Pakistan. Having already demanded that FC and the Army ‘get-out-of-Balochistan’, should Akhtar become CM, he would demand the same saying it was his election-promise. The Army is smug and detached as it was in pre-1971 election in East Pakistan, which gave the Awami League overwhelming majority which presented it as mandate for secession. Mengal and his allies cannot contest or win elections in Pashtun areas but if they win big in Baloch/Brahui areas, they will present it as a mandate for secession of Central and coastal Baluchistan. With USA and Afghanistan supporting insurgency in Baloch/Brahui areas and India enjoying considerable influence with the ANP, the situation would be out of the control of patriotic politicians. The military would then have to crush the rebellion. What would be chances for success? That is not hard to guess. A political solution is preferable but it would be much harder to pursue after insurgency supporting parties win outright with blackmail and intimidation as in the past. With no writ of government in Baloch/Brahui areas, free-and-fair elections will only be a slogan. The local sardar will win by dint of their tribal authority despite, nay because of, their anti-Pakistan credentials. Is the Army doing right in the name of sham democracy which would to let the country be torn apart?

During the last 5 years the Pashtun population, which is nearly 50% of the total, was sidelined in the province. The only hope is that the Pashtun, Hazara, settlers, and minor tribes unite in a coalition. JUI (F) has always sold itself to the highest bidder, even if its anti Pakistan. But if the majority Pashtun vote remains pro-Pakistan, the CM will not be able to openly go against Pakistan. The damage to the federation from allowing anti-Pakistan elements to operate as legitimate politicians free to plunder at home and make deal with hostile foreign powers would then make the TTP appear to be saviors and redeemers. Giving a free reign to the foreign enemy and their local collaborators would not create patriots; it will create and encourage traitors. The elections used to be contested for political power but now with the scale of corruption having reached billions of rupees, elective office has become a goldmine. With foreign powers supporting their collaborators agents, the stakes have risen by several notches. Militancy and inter-tribal turf war is expected to intensify as the Elections draw closer. Balochistan may see the worst bloodshed of its 43 years history