Akhtar Mengal, chief of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), was prevented from boarding a private airline’s flight to Dubai, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) confirmed on Sunday.
Mengal took to X (formerly Twitter) to share that he was offloaded from his flight at Quetta while en route to Dubai. Immigration staff informed him that his name had been placed on the Provisional National Identification List (PNIL).
The politician also posted a screenshot of immigration data showing his name listed “with the approval of the competent authority” and explicit instructions to prevent his departure abroad.
In response to the incident, former federal ministers Agha Hasan Baloch and Ghulam Nabi Mari condemned Mengal’s offloading, labeling the action as unlawful and unconstitutional.
“Akhtar Mengal is still a member of the National Assembly; his resignation has not been accepted yet,” Baloch remarked.
Mengal, a seasoned politician and leader of the BNP-M, had tendered his resignation from the National Assembly in September 2024, citing the deteriorating security situation in Balochistan.
Earlier this year, Mengal had staged a 20-day sit-in at Mastung’s Lak Pass to protest the arrests of Baloch rights activists and police actions. His party initiated a long march from Wadh to Quetta on March 28, protesting for nearly three weeks against the detention of Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leaders and activists, including Dr. Mahrang Baloch and Sammi Deen Baloch, and demanding their release.
