Syed Ali Shah:Â
Quetta, July 15 — The Balochistan High Court has decided to hold a joint hearing on all constitutional petitions filed against the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act 2025, which was unanimously passed by the provincial assembly in March this year.
Despite the bill’s smooth passage in the assembly, key opposition parties, including the Balochistan National Party (BNP), National Party, and Islami Party, strongly opposed the act, calling it detrimental to provincial rights over natural resources.
Senior politician and former senator Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani has formally challenged the act in the High Court, terming it an attack on Balochistan’s resource ownership. National Party chief and former Chief Minister Dr. Abdul Malik Baloch, as well as Balochistan National Party President Sardar Akhtar Mengal, have also filed separate constitutional petitions against the act.
During Monday’s hearing, a two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Rozi Khan Bareech and Justice Sardar Ahmed Halimi directed that all related petitions be consolidated to ensure a fair and unified interpretation of the law.
The court emphasized that given the political and legal importance of the case, hearing all petitions together would help resolve objections effectively. The next hearing has been scheduled for Monday, July 21, 2025.
