The main organiser of Baloch Yekjehti Committee (BYC) Dr Mahrang Baloch’s detention under Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) law has been extended by a month. Along with her, all other detainees who were arrested in Quetta will also continue to be in jail with no legal remedy available to them as Balochistan High Court has already refused to grant them any relief. The court orders are so confusing and unclear that it is not possible to challenge them in the Supreme Court also, according to lawyers representing Mahrang and others.
Incidentally, a British era law, MPO gives wide powers to District Magistrate (DM) to order detention of those the government wants to target for one month in the first instance. This so-called preventive detention can then be extended twice, in each instance for 30 days, making it possible for the administration to jail anyone it chooses for up to 100 days without bringing any formal charges. The case of Dr Mahrang Baloch has now reached the United Nations (UN) and will be scrutinised for allegatioans made regarding her arbitrary detention.
15 forcibly disappeared
At least fifteen individuals have reportedly been subjected to enforced disappearance across multiple districts of Balochistan, while one man died in custody following alleged torture. Six previously disappeared persons have been released in a separate incident, according to family members and local sources.
In Kech district, 37-year-old Sifa Baloch, son of Maula Bakhsh and a resident of Mir Yaqoob Mohalla, Apsar, was abducted on April 20. Witnesses said he was taken by personnel of Military Intelligence. His whereabouts remain unknown. On April 22, Umar Jan, son of Hassan, was reportedly abducted by operatives of a “state-sponsored death squad” in the Gilli area. His family said he was taken from Buleda town, also located in Kech district.
That same day, Mayar Baloch, son of Ghulam Nabi and a resident of Ward No. 1 in Pasni, Gwadar district, was reportedly detained from his home by military intelligence personnel. Mayar, a student, has not been seen since. In Dera Bugti, eight local traders involved in the wheat and chickpea trade were reportedly detained by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD). According to sources, ransom was demanded from the detainees. Those unable to pay were forcibly disappeared.
The missing have been identified as: Gul Muhammad, son of Jumma Bugti; Godho, son of Bakht Ali Bugti; Mureed, son of Khuda Bakhsh Bugti; Ali Khan, son of Umar Bakhsh Bugti; Gola, son of Lalahaan Bugti; Mahindra Bugti (a local Hindu trader); Bhalla Bugti; and Javed, son of Arz Muhammad Bugti.
Death in Custody
On April 3, five members of the Mohammadani Marri family were reportedly detained by Pakistani forces from Barkhan’s Rakhni market. One of them, Bakhtiyar, son of Miandad, was allegedly subjected to severe torture in custody and released after seven days. He later died from his injuries, according to local sources.
The four other men remain missing. One has been identified as Musa, son of Miandad. The identities of the remaining three have not yet been confirmed.
Meanwhile, it has emerged that of the five people killed by the Pakistani security forces in an encounter on Monday, at least three were persons who had been forcibly disappeared (abducted) by death squads and Military Intelligence (MI). The locals said in Quetta that this was clearly a case of staging fake encounter. In due course of time, the identity of the other two killed by the security forces will also become clear as such tactics are often adopted by the Pakistani security forces.
Six Released in Dhadar
In a separate development, six individuals who had been forcibly disappeared on 4 April were later released in Balochistan’s Dhadar. All of them are members of the Kurd tribe from Dasht Mastung. The released men have been identified as: Mohammad Umar, son of Mohammad Anwar; Abdul Wahab, son of Ghulam Sarwar; Siraj Ahmad, son of Painda Khan; Bismillah, son of Ghulam Sarwar; Shahjan, son of Painda Khan; and Saddam Hussain, son of Sain Dad. According to The Balochistan Post.
The recent wave of enforced disappearances has renewed demands for justice from human rights organisations and families of the missing. Activists argue that the abductions—often carried out without warrants or legal justification—are part of a broader pattern of systemic rights violations in Balochistan.
The human rights department of the Baloch National Movement (BNM), Paank, issued a statement condemning what it called a policy of “collective punishment” by Pakistani forces and intelligence agencies. “Families are left in anguish without information, legal recourse, or justice,” the group said.
It called on international human rights bodies, including the United Nations and Amnesty International, to take urgent notice of the situation. “Justice for the disappeared is not optional,” Paank said. “It is a moral and legal obligation.”
Balochistan CM’s false charges
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti has apologised to Baloch activist Sammi Deen Baloch after previously accusing her of burning the Pakistani national flag. Speaking to reporters in Quetta on Tuesday, Mr Bugti said: “If Sammi Deen herself is saying that she did not burn the flag, then this is a welcome clarification.”
The Chief Minister had earlier alleged in a television interview that Ms Baloch, a leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), had been filmed burning the flag. He described BYC leaders as “anti-Pakistan” and claimed he had seen video evidence.
In response, Ms Baloch issued a strong denial and publicly challenged Mr Bugti to release the alleged footage. “I openly challenge Sarfraz Bugti to present this video to the nation. Tell us when, where, and on what occasion I committed such an act. If he can prove his claim, I will surrender to the law. But if he fails — which he will — then he must resign immediately,” she said.
“Sammi Deen called me, and before that, she called my minister. She denied the act, and if she felt hurt by the accusation, then I apologise,” he said. However, Ms Baloch rejected this version of events, saying it was Mr Bugti who contacted her.
Senior journalist Hamid Mir posted on X that Ms Baloch confirmed the Chief Minister had contacted her. “If lies in the name of national interest were to end, it would help reduce hatred,” he said.
