Karachi - Balochistan National Party (BNP) leader Akhter Mengal on Tuesday demanded the government to put off census in Balochistan unless normalcy returned to the province.

Addressing a press conference along with Sindh United Party (SUP)President Jalal Mehmood Shah at Haider Manzil, Mengal said that local population of Balochistan had to migrate from the province during the last 15 years due to bad law and order situation, and several villages were deserted. “Therefore there is a chance that people not natives of the soil could be shifted to these places and registered in the census, which may turn Baloch into a minority in their own province,” he apprehended.

He demanded the government not to go ahead with the preparations for census unless law and order situation improved and normalcy returned to Balochistan and unless the locals returned to their homes. He also called for the introduction of a mechanism for ensuring the return and registration of immigrants.

“There are 400 times increase in the population of Balochistan, and there is no mechanism to figure out population of illegal immigrants in the province,” he said, and added, “Even the census form does not have a separate space for registration of these immigrants.”

Speaking on CPEC, Mengal alleged that the project was actually meant for the progress of only one province, and the rulers were using the name of Balochistan just to safeguard their vested interests. “The rulers are striking secret deals to safeguard their interests,” he elaborated.

“Out of $57 billion allocated for CPEC, only $1 billion have been earmarked for the progress of Balochistan,” he said, and added that this project should not be termed as the project for the prosperity of Balochistan as people of the province were still deprived of basic necessities of life.

Speaking on the occasion, SUP President Jalal Mehmood Shah also announced to take out a rally from Numaish Chowrangi on February 26 against corruption, terrorism and religious extremism.

The two leaders also agreed to a 10-point agenda that underlines the establishment of a federal system through a peaceful political struggle, struggle against religious, state and political extremism, acquisition of provinces’ rights over their natural resources and ports, strict action against corrupt bureaucracy, political leadership and other influential people, right of nationality, vote and purchase of land for locals of the provinces, repatriation of immigrants and granting the authority to issue NICs to the provinces, cancellation of NICS and passports of the immigrants, struggling for an independent ECP and a separate delimitation commission along with the introduction of a biometric and electronic voter machine system, listening to the say of provinces in foreign and internal affairs, including international agreements, giving status of a national language to local languages and struggling for free education and health facilities.