Quetta [Pakistan]: A petition has been filed in the Balochistan High Court on Sunday seeking disqualification of Chief Minister Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo after a video went viral on social media showing him distributing money among participants of the recently concluded 31-day-long Gwadar sit-in. The petition was filed by Advocate Amanullah Kanrani who pleaded the court to disqualify the chief minister for distributing money among the protesters, reported Dawn. “The Chief Minister does not comply with Article 62 and 63 after paying money to protesters,” the petition said. For the past several weeks, thousands of people were protesting demanding basic rights in support of the “Gwadar ko haq do” movement in the port city. Among other things, thousands of residents were demanding access to clean drinking water and an end to the “trawler mafia”. The demands also included the removal of additional check-posts at Pushkan, Sarbandan and Gwadar City, and the opening of the Pakistan-Iran border. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Balochistan government condemned what he called the propaganda against CM Bizenjo, reported Dawn. The Balochistan government’s spokesperson claimed that CM Bizenjo distributed money among poor women and children outside the area where the sit-in was held. He said providing financial assistance to poor women is a tribal tradition in Balochistan and that there is nothing wrong with it. Criticising the chief minister for doing something which is a tradition of the province is unjustified, he added.
