Political manoeuvring is gaining momentum with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman focusing on government change in Islamabad and both the PTI and the opposition parties trying their best to gain the support Akhtar Mengal of BNP-M who recently quit the ruling coalition.

According to 24NewsHD TV channel, sources say the rumours of in-house change in Balochistan came to an early end as Fazl is eyeing the Centre and has asked the party leaders to remain on opposition benches in Balochistan.

This advice was given as Fazl chaired a meeting of his party’s provincial lawmakers and leaders on Sunday, where the participants talked about toppling the Balochistan government. But the seasoned politician had totally different views as he was determined to bring a change in the federal setup, especially at a time when the Finance Bill is yet to be approved.

The sources say Fazl told the meeting that the JUI-F could go for government formation along with the allies in Balochistan if the ruling Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) members staged a rebellion.

The JUI-F chief, after holding two meetings in two days with Mengal, now wants to contact Shahzain Bugti of JWP as well, as he informed his party’s Balochistan leaders that it was the time to have consultations with the federal government’s allies. 

On the other hand, the PPP, following the footsteps of JUI-F, too has contacted Mengal, as both sides agreed to hold a meeting soon.

The sources say the two parties discussed important issues and decided to give a tough time to the PTI, as the government is unable to win back Mengal’s support.

The latest politicking is a result of Mengal deciding last week to leave the ruling coalition last week. And the situation is worsening for the PTI government, as another ally JWP has now given a one-week ultimatum to implement the agreement.

Just like Mengal, JWP’s Shahzain said the PTI had not fulfilled a single promise and made it clear that the alliance with the ruling party would come to an end if the agreement was materialised within a week.

Shahzain, who is a National Assembly member from NA-259 (Dera Bugti-cum-Kohlu-cum-Sibi-cum-Lehri), told a party meeting that many Bugti tribesmen were spending their lives in a helpless condition in Punjab and Sindh.

Imran, at time of taking oath as prime minister, had promised to develop Balochistan at par with other provinces but not a single promise was fulfilled during the last two years, he added.

The Mengal-led BNP-M, which has three National Assembly and one Senate seats, last week left the ruling coalition over the government’s failure to implement the six-point agreement inked at the time the federal government was formed.

Although the prime minister has directed federal cabinet member Pervaiz Khattak to lead the efforts to convince Mengal for reversing the decision, the recently held meeting and the later attempts have not produce the desired result, as the BNP-M chief made it clear that the agreement had to be implemented first.

Addressing the National Assembly on Wednesday, Mengal had made announcement, saying, “We are not a colony. We should be considered as citizens.”

He said there were no online classes in Balochistan because there was no 3G or 4G service in the province. “No one allows us to be in the line. You are talking about [being] online,” the seasoned politician remarked.

Mengal said the ruling party had entered into a deal with the BNP-M on the issues of recovery of missing persons and the development of Balochistan. Were these agreements implemented, Mengal asked and added that a sister committed suicide after protesting for the recovery of his brother who had been missing for the last four years.

He also asked the relevant minister to explain whether the move to revise the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award is part of the plan to roll back the 18th Amendment. “Balochistan is nowhere in the budget. It has been given a small packet, not the Rs10 billion package,” said Mengal.

Later on Saturday, Mengal also attended an All Parties Conference (APC) organised by the JUI-F in Islamabad, after which Fazl said the government statements about the 18th Amendment were very alarming and they would not accept any reduction in the NFC (National Finance Award) Award share of provinces.

He also demanded an immediate end to the FC powers of arrests, saying that the unconstitutional and arbitrary detentions were unacceptable.

Addressing a press briefing after the APC, the seasoned political leader shared these views as he read out the declaration agreed upon at the gathering.

“The change in the NFC Award is actually a conspiracy to roll back the 18th Amendment which would be resisted,” said the JUI-F chief. 

The opposition political parties attending the meeting also called for increasing the powers of Senate and eliminating all the death squads working in Balochistan.

As the provinces are already critical of the federal government led by the PTI over the slashing their respective NFC Award shares, Fazl said Balochistan had been ignored in the CPEC. “We consider PTI and BAP as twin brothers,” remarked Fazl in his typical sarcastic manner.

Speaking on the occasion, Mengal said they were not interested in what the ruling alliance was doing as his party had left the government. “We will not support the Finance Bill,” he made it clear.

Not only the BNP-M but also the entire Balochistan join the PTI if the government solved the problems, said Mengal, in an apparent jibe at Prime Minister Imran for his ineffectiveness. “We brought the issue of Balochistan to the Parliament from Twitter,” he added.

Mengal added that he could not make the decision of joining the government again on his own as it was up to his party’s general council.

Replying to a question, Fazl called for sentencing the government, saying the court decision in favour of Justice Qazi Faez Isa showed that the presidential reference was based upon mala fide intentions.

The two leaders also said that the decision about tabling a no-confidence motion against the Balochistan chief minister would be taken by the provincial chapters of their parties. In the case of Centre, they added, they were eyeing the Senate elections.

Also on Saturday, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had warned that no one would be able to control the situation if people came out on the streets over issues like the 18th Amendment, NFC Award, inflation and missing persons.

The PPP chairman criticised Imran for his recent statements about the 18th Amendment and the NFC Award, saying his assertions were actually against the 1973 Constitution. There won’t be any compromise on the 1973 Constitution, he made it clear.

Those who believe in the 1973 Constitution, NFC Award and devaluation of powers to provinces should leave the ruling alliance, Bilawal remarked.