BNP-M Chief Akhtar Mengal Decries Mistreatment, Claims Police Raid on Lodges

Islamabad, Thursday: Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal has expressed strong discontent over the treatment of his party members, claiming that his Islamabad lodges were raided by police. In a late-night post on X, Mengal revealed that BNP-M senator Naseema Ehsan had been confined to her apartment, and her son had been “abducted.”

Mengal shared a media report outlining the police raid on his residence, a claim that the Islamabad Police later denied. BNP-M Acting President Sajid Tareen, who was staying at Mengal’s apartment at the time, confirmed that the police arrived, citing intelligence reports against the residents. Tareen, describing it as harassment, said he invited the authorities to speak with him directly rather than acting on unsubstantiated information.

Tareen also emphasized that these tactics were aimed at pressuring BNP-M senators ahead of their vote on the constitutional package. He asserted his commitment to ensuring that the senators vote freely, according to the party’s position, without yielding to any external influence. “I am not afraid of such tactics,” he remarked.

In response, an Islamabad Police spokesperson clarified that they had not raided Mengal’s apartment but had visited to follow up on a complaint by Tareen, who reported being followed. The police insisted their visit was misrepresented as a raid.

Mengal, who resigned from the National Assembly in September due to the “worsening situation” in Balochistan, has been vocal about the neglect of his province. He lamented the ongoing harassment of his party’s senators and their families, suggesting that he might instruct them to resign as well.

The BNP-M chief has been critical of the government’s treatment of Balochistan, stating that the province’s concerns are frequently ignored in the national assembly. “This assembly does not listen to us; what’s the point of sitting here?” he said during his resignation speech.