Balochistan National Party Opposes Mines & Minerals Act, Calls It Unconstitutional and Exploitative

Quetta:The **Balochistan National Party (BNP)** has strongly condemned the recently enacted **Mines & Minerals Act**, calling it contrary to **Article 172 of the 1973 Constitution**, the spirit of provincial autonomy and the **18th Amendment**. In an official statement the party accused the law of advancing a policy to transfer provincial mineral control to the federation and labeled it part of a continuing pattern of resource exploitation by “Form-47” rulers.

The BNP’s statement said the provincial Mines Department has for decades delivered dubious large projects that failed to benefit local communities. The latest amendments, the party argued, institutionalize an extractive, centrally controlled model that undermines Balochistan’s rights and fuels deep suspicion and resentment among political forces.

Asserting its stance as a national-democratic party, the BNP demanded the **complete repeal** of the Act. The party pointed to petitions already filed in higher courts and said political parties inside and outside the provincial parliament have overwhelmingly rejected the law. The statement warned that unlawful, extra-constitutional measures will not be accepted and pledged to resist attempts to hand over the province’s natural wealth to Islamabad.

BNP leadership under **Sardar Akhtar Jan Mengal**, the statement said, represents the genuine aspirations of the Baloch people and called for any future legislation on minerals to be crafted through **consensus with all stakeholders**—not imposed to facilitate resource plundering. The party insisted that control over Balochistan’s resources should remain with the province’s people, not with the federal government.