ISLAMABAD Ostensibly without taking Baloch leadership on board, the government is initiating debate on Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan in the joint sitting of Parliament today (Monday). The Baloch nationalists and even those who are part of Pakistan Peoples Party coalition government have out rightly rejected the package soon after its presentation in the joint sitting on November 24 and even the Chief Minister Balochistan and other key leaders from the province had not attended the high tea arranged in their honour by the Speaker National Assembly Dr Fahmida Mirza. Senator Mian Raza Rabbani who had presented the package in the Parliament had admitted that it was just a beginning and could not be a substitute to provincial autonomy, the longstanding demand of the Baloch people. In the light of background interviews with the Baloch MPs and people at the helm of affairs, the Monday session of the Parliament would likely see scathing criticism on the package and demands for some concrete measures to appease the angry Balochs. Even the Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), the representative party of the Pashtoons living in Balochistan, had also rejected the package, terming it just a gimmick and jugglery of words with nothing for the large segment of Pakhtoons. Some political observers saw an NRO like debacle on the issue, as according to them, the Government has not completed its homework before tabling the package in the Parliament. They feared that the package instead of appeasing the enraged Baloch nationalists would backfire and the Monday session would give a glimpse of it. In this confused and murky situation, the Prime Minister Syed Yuosuf Raza Gilani had somehow tried to satisfy the Balochs by assuring that he would personally monitor the implementation of this package, but the question remained whether or not Baloch nationalists, especially seeking independence, were listening. PML-Q Senator and Deputy Chairman Senate Mir Jan Muhammad Khan Jamali, when contacted, said that the Government had not taken all Baloch leadership into confidence and always consulted only to its own supporting tribes. He said that the missing persons had started coming to their homes but the government would also have to call back Frontier Constabulary from Balochistan and depute them at borders. He added that the rights of ownership (Haq-e-Malkiyat) should be given to the province. The Government should take these steps simultaneously, he said. Meanwhile, the discussion on the Balochistan package is going to start today (Monday) in a joint session under the chair of Chairman Senate Farooq H. Naek and the government may face strong reaction from the parliamentarians of Balochistan for not taking them into confidence or removing their reservations before presenting it in the House for debate. However, when contacted, most of the MPs from Balochistan were unaware of their party policy or stance regarding the package and were of the view that the decision would be taken just before the start of the session. Meetings of the Opposition and ruling parties are also expected to hold today before the session to set and convey the party stance on the package.