Latest news with #BalochistanNationalParty
India Today
14-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
'We're not Pakistani': Baloch leader declares independence from Pak
Baloch representative Mir Yar Baloch has declared Balochistan independent from Pakistan, accusing Islamabad of decades-long violence, enforced disappearances, and human rights abuses in the region. The announcement was made via posts on social media platform it the 'national verdict' of the Baloch people, Mir Yar wrote: 'Tum maroge hum niklenge, hum nasal bachane nikle hain. Aao hamara saath do.'advertisementHe said Baloch people across 'Pakistan-occupied Balochistan' are on the streets and that the world can no longer remain silent. Mir Yar also urged Indians—especially media, YouTubers, and intellectuals—not to refer to Balochs as 'Pakistan's own people.''We are not Pakistani, we are Balochistani. Pakistan's own people are the Punjabi who never faced air bombings, enforced disappearances and genocide,' he Baloch leader expressed full support for India's position on Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). He said:'Balochistan fully supports the India decision of asking Pakistan to vacate PoK. The international community must urge Pakistan to immediately leave PoK to avoid another humiliation of surrender on its 93,000 army personnel in Dhaka.'He warned that if the situation escalates, the blame would fall on Pakistan's military leadership: 'India is capable of defeating Pakistan army and if Pakistan didn't pay any heed then the only Pakistani greedy army generals must be held responsible for bloodshed because Islamabad is using PoK people as human shields.'advertisementMir Yar called for official recognition of Balochistan's independence and urged the international community to reject Pakistan's narrative, stating that Balochistan was forcibly annexed with foreign region has witnessed ongoing violence, disappearances, and extrajudicial killings for years. Rights groups have accused both Pakistani security forces and armed militants of widespread abuse. Civilians remain trapped in the conflict, with minimal media access and little legal to the growing dissent, former Balochistan Chief Minister and Balochistan National Party (BNP) President Akhtar Mengal recently voiced serious concerns about the situation. In a post on X, Mengal said: 'There is not a single inch of Balochistan left where the government can claim authority. They have lost this war completely and irreversibly. It is over.'Mengal accused the Pakistani state of ignoring repeated warnings from Baloch leaders: 'We warned them, just as those before us warned them. But instead of listening, they mocked us. They dismissed our words as empty threats while they fueled a system of oppression, looting, and bloodshed.'He held every major institution—government, judiciary, political parties, and the military—responsible for the region's suffering.'To the federal government, to the political parties, to the judiciary, and to the establishment—you have brought Balochistan to the brink of destruction with your own hands. But this time, it is beyond our control. And it is beyond yours as well,' he resigned from his National Assembly seat in September 2024, citing worsening conditions and the rising number of enforced disappearances targeting Baloch activists. He said he no longer saw any purpose in remaining part of the crisis further deepened on March 11, 2025, when Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants hijacked the Quetta–Peshawar Jaffar Express, taking more than 212 passengers hostage, including security InMust Watch
Express Tribune
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Mengal calls off sit-in, announces new protest drive
Listen to article Sardar Akhtar Mengal, chief of his own faction of the Balochistan National Party, on Wednesday called off his 20-day-long sit-in at the Lakpass area of Mastung district against the arrest of Baloch activists, fearing its impact on traders in the impoverished province. The party had launched the long march to protest the arrest of BYC chief organiser Dr Mahrang Baloch, other leaders and workers as well as police crackdowns on a sit-in. Mengal had announced that the party would march on Quetta but was kept at bay by the government. Addressing a news conference in Mastung, Mengal called off the sit-in, saying: "We believe in a peaceful struggle. We are not ending the movement but will initiate a public outreach movement from today." He announced that the party would organise rallies and protests at district level across Balochistan in the coming days. "In the first phase, we would hold protest rallies in Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar and Surab. In the second stage, these rallies would be held in areas of Turbat, Gwadar and Makran," Mengal explained. He added that the third phase of his protest movement would engage the public in the Nasirabad, Jaffarabad and Dera Murad Jamali districts, along with other areas of Balochistan. "We are not backing down, we are taking the movement to every corner of Balochistan," he declared. The BNP-M leader emphasised that the campaign aims to bring national attention to the issue of enforced disappearances and prolonged detentions without trial. He called on the federal and provincial governments to respond to the growing concerns of the Baloch people. Mengal's announcement marks a new phase in the party's political efforts to address grievances through democratic means, while keeping the spotlight on unresolved human rights issues in Balochistan. Meanwhile, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti lashed out at the BYC, terming its activists "abettors" of separatists. Responding to a query during a news conference in Islamabad, CM Bugti said: "Those who call themselves human rights activists, the BYC, are not registered anywhere. "They burn Pakistan's flag wherever they pass through. They are not peaceful, they are abettors of those from the separatist movement and terrorists," he alleged. The chamber of commerce in Quetta told local media that the rally had caused economic losses of $120,000 a day, with traders complaining that their loaded trucks could not cross into Iran or Afghanistan. The decision came a day after a court refused to rule on the detention of the activist Baloch, who, along with criminal charges of terrorism, sedition and murder, faces a public order offence brought by the provincial government. The court instead passed the case to the government, a decision her lawyers said would delay justice. Army chief downplayed the growing insurgency in an address aired by state television. "1,500 people will say that they are going to take away Balochistan from us? Your next 10 generations cannot even take it from us," General Syed Asim Munir said. He said foreign investment would flow into the region after Pakistan hosted a mining conference this month.
Express Tribune
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
CM urges respect for constitutional limits amid BNP protest
Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti has said that while peaceful protest is a constitutional right of every citizen, the authority to allow public assemblies lies with the government, and everyone must respect the constitutional framework. He expressed these views during a meeting with Nawabzada Mir Israrullah Khan Zehri and Sardar Kamal Khan Bangulzai at the Chief Minister's Secretariat on Monday. The two Baloch nationalist leaders called on the CM to pave the way for a negotiated settlement regarding the ongoing long march of BNP chief Sardar Akhtar Jan Mengal. The meeting focused on the ongoing protest by the Balochistan National Party (Mengal), as well as the overall political situation in the province. CM Bugti briefed the two leaders on the government's political and administrative efforts to resolve the matter. He revealed that three rounds of dialogue had already been held with BNP chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal. "Out of the three demands presented by him, one has been accepted by the government," he said, adding that despite the government's serious efforts to reach a political resolution, the response from the other side remained non-cooperative, leading to a continued deadlock. The chief minister, along with Zehri and Bangulzai, stressed the importance of joint efforts for lasting peace in Balochistan. They also agreed to continue political dialogue and engagement to address issues. Meanwhile, a shutter-down strike was observed in various parts of Balochistan on the call of Balochistan National Party in solidarity with the BNP protest. The BNP, led by Sardar Akhtar Mengal, has been staging a sit-in in the Lupas area of Quetta for over a week.
Arab News
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Authorities warn of action as nationalist party announces Quetta march for Baloch activists' release
QUETTA: The provincial administration of Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan on Saturday warned of strict action after a Baloch nationalist party announced to march to Quetta to pressure authorities for the release of activists from an ethnic rights group. The Balochistan National Party (BNP-M) led by Sardar Akhtar Mengal on Friday announced the march toward the provincial capital after holding two inconclusive rounds of talks with officials, demanding the release of detained ethnic rights activists. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee's (BYC) top leader, Dr. Mahrang Baloch, and several of her colleagues were arrested on March 22 after staging a sit-in outside the University of Balochistan. Pakistani authorities charged them with terrorism, sedition and murder following a protest in which three demonstrators were killed, according to police documents. Mengal decided to launch a protest after objecting to the government's treatment of female BYC leaders, calling for their immediate release and condemning what he described as the suppression of their democratic rights. 'The provincial government is ready to allow Mengal and his party to protest at Sariab Road [in Quetta], but he is adamant on entering the Red Zone,' Shahid Rind, the Balochistan administration's spokesperson, said at a news conference, referring to a high-security area housing key government buildings. 'The Government of Balochistan will not allow anyone to violate Section 144, and action will be taken against the protesters,' he added, citing the legal provision that empowers authorities to ban public gatherings of more than four people to maintain law and order. Rind said Mengal had demanded the release of BYC activists at the very start of the negotiations. 'If the courts provide relief to Mahrang Baloch and other activists, the government will accept the decision,' he continued while explaining the authorities' position over the issue during the talks. 'We still stand by the offers made to Sardar Mengal,' he added. 'But now the ball is in his court.' During the media interaction, Rind said anti-state speeches had been made during Mengal's protest, and the government would take legal action against those responsible. His comments came a day after Pakistan's top army generals met to review the national security situation and pledged not to let 'foreign-backed proxies' and their 'political supporters' destabilize Balochistan. Authorities have long claimed a nexus between Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants and BYC activists, an allegation the latter deny. The crackdown on BYC leaders followed a deadly train attack last month in Balochistan, in which BLA separatists took hundreds of passengers hostage. The standoff lasted nearly 36 hours until the army launched a rescue operation, killing 33 militants. A final count showed 26 passengers had also died in the incident. Authorities later accused BYC activists of storming a mortuary in Quetta and seizing the bodies of three militants. Asked about reports of government negotiations with BYC chief Dr. Mahrang Baloch in prison, Rind said the provincial administration was not engaged in any such dialogue.
Express Tribune
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
BNP's Mengal escapes suicide attack
An alleged suicide attack took place on Saturday near the site of a sit-in staged by the Balochistan National Party (BNP-M) at the Lak Pass area of Balochistan's Mastung district. BNP-M chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal and other senior party leaders were present at the protest site when the allaged attacker detonated his suicide vest. However, fortunately, all people remained unharmed. Mengal's party had launched a long march from Wadh to Quetta against the arrest of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leaders including Dr Mahrang Baloch and Sami Deen Muhammad. According to sources, the Balochistan government had been in contact with the BNP-M leadership since the previous night and a delegation from the BNP-M had already met with the local administration. A government team was also scheduled to meet Sardar Akhtar Mengal on Saturday, when the incident took place. They said the government has assured the protestors that a thorough investigation has been launched whose findings will be shared with the public soon. Following the incident, security was significantly increased in and around the BNP-M long march. Authorities have implemented strict measures to ensure safety in the area, aiming to prevent any further threats, officials said. Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti strongly condemned what he referred to as an "alleged suicide bombing." In a post on social media platform X, he assured that the government would investigate the incident thoroughly. He also reaffirmed the government's commitment to providing security to BNP-M leadership and participants. The JUI-F also condemned the suicide attack, noting that it is the responsibility of the government to ensure protection of peaceful protests. In a statement issued on Saturday night, JUI-F's spokesperson Aslam Ghauri said the suicide attack on Mengal and his workers was deeply regrettable. "The Constitution of Pakistan allows peaceful protests. Ensuring security for peaceful protests is the government's responsibility," he said. He said those advocating for their rights through constitutional means must be fully protected. "Democrats should not be pushed against the wall. When voices are ignored in Parliament, people are forced to take to the streets," he added.
