The Sindhi–Baloch–Pashtun Front (SBPF) was formed in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
on 31 March 1985 by
Afzal Bangash
Mohammad Afzal Khan Bangash ( ps, محمد افضل بنګش; April 16, 1924 — October 28, 1986) was a Pashtun Marxist political activist serving as an office-bearer in the National Awami Party (NAP), and later, along with his colleague Sher Ali ...
,
Ataullah Mengal
Ataullah Mengal (; 24 March 1929 – 2 September 2021) was a Pakistani politician and feudal figure. He was the head of the Mengal tribe until he nominated one of his grandsons, Sardar Asad Ullah Mengal, as his tribal successor. He was also the ...
,
Mumtaz Bhutto
Mumtaz Ali Khan Bhutto ( ur, ممتاز علی بھٹو , sd, ممتاز علي ڀٽو) (28 November 1933 – 18 July 2021), was a Pakistani politician who served as 8th Governor of Sindh and later the 13th Chief Minister of Sindh. He was als ...
and others to counter what they perceived as a
Punjabi establishment's hegemony of
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. It called for a confederation in Pakistan instead of a federation.
The Front leaders saw the country as being under military oppression, noting that the provinces were united only through the brute force of the Military. The SBPF concluded that the agreement between the constituent units has been broken and Pakistan had been turned into occupied territory. As an alternative to the federal system, the SBPF put forward a confederal proposal premised on a right to secede in the face of unchecked central military powers.
General Zia's response towards the confederationists was to warn that "all such persons will have to erase such wayward ideas from their minds and become Pakistanis first," and arresting SBPF leaders for delivering speeches which "vehemently criticized the ideology of Pakistan and promulgated
'Confederal System'."
After the death of Afzal Bangash in October 1986, the Sindhi–Baloch–Pashtun Front slowly withered away.
References
Political parties in Pakistan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sindhi-Baloch-Pashtun Front