Quetta (Balochistan), Nov 14: Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a frontline freedom-seeking armed outfit of Balochistan, tonight named Rehman Gul alias Mureed as its Commander-in-Chief, to succeed Bashir Zeb.
In a statement, BLA spokesman said Mureed, who was serving as a member of the organization’s Senior Command Council and Commander of the Majeed Brigade, was unanimously elected by the Senior Command Council after a process of mutual consultation and securing the full endorsement of BLA’s entire leadership and all its commanders.
He has vast experience in commanding key positions within the organization, the statement said.
“The Baloch Liberation Army reiterates its resolve that under the leadership of the new command, this struggle for national liberation will continue with renewed vigour and full intensity,” it said.
The announcement came 11 days after the BLA said Bashir Zeb would “no longer serve as the head of the organisation” following a “decision of the Senior Command Council in accordance with the constitution of the organization.”
This is the first occasion in the history of the Baloch resistance movement that an armed resistance organization has democratically changed its top leadership through a completely peaceful, dignified, and constitutional procedure without any internal fragmentation, breakdown, or conflict, BLA spokesman said.
During the reorganization of the BLA in 2018, its ideological and structural founder Ustad Aslam Baloch ended the hereditary politics and lifelong leadership, establishing the organization on the foundations of merit, transparency, and institutional principles.
“He set the guiding principle that no matter how influential, prominent, or high-ranking a commander may be in this movement, no individual can remain Commander-in-Chief for life,” said BLA spokesman Jeeyand Baloch in his statement on November 3.
“To maintain this ideological and organizational continuity, a clear and consensus-based procedure was incorporated into the BLA constitution so that, if the need ever arose, an established and peaceful constitutional pathway for a smooth leadership transition would exist,” the spokesman said.
In accordance with this principle, a joint meeting of the highest bodies of the BLA was held on October 16, during which constitutional and organizational matters were thoroughly reviewed, the November 3 statement said.
During the meeting, all commanders unanimously decided in favor of leadership transition to impart fresh momentum to the organization’s activities, he said.
“The Baloch Liberation Army is the guardian of the sacred aspirations of the martyrs, ideological principles, and Baloch national liberation.
“Our national war will continue with full strength, organization, and firm resolve until the complete and final withdrawal of the occupying Pakistani forces is achieved and an independent and sovereign Balochistan is established,” the spokesman said.
In the past, resistance organizations lacked a democratic and constitutional mechanism to change leadership, which resulted in internal discord and fragmentation.(NVI)
