QUETTA: Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti on Sunday rejected any possibility of negotiations with militant groups, accusing India of backing efforts to destabilize Pakistan following a wave of coordinated attacks across the province.
Speaking at a press conference in Quetta, the chief minister said security forces neutralized 145 militants within nearly 40 hours after the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) carried out attacks in 12 towns. He added that 17 security personnel and 31 civilians were martyred in the violence.
Bugti stated that the bodies of the slain militants were in the custody of authorities and disclosed that in Gwadar, terrorists killed five women and three children belonging to a Baloch family from Khuzdar.
The chief minister accused hostile forces of using militant groups as proxies to undermine Pakistan, alleging Indian involvement in supporting such activities. He questioned the legitimacy of engaging in talks with the BLA, asking whether it was a registered political entity eligible for negotiations. “They want to enforce their ideology through violence. The state will not surrender, even for a moment,” Bugti said, adding that militants could create unrest but would never be allowed to seize any part of the country.
Emphasizing the government’s resolve, Bugti said those responsible for the attacks would be relentlessly pursued. “Our blood is not cheap,” he declared, warning that no sanctuary would be left for terrorists.
He reiterated the provincial government’s commitment to restoring peace in Balochistan and rejected claims of indiscriminate use of force, saying only limited, intelligence-based operations were conducted.
Bugti further revealed that intelligence agencies had received prior information about the planned attacks, prompting security operations a day in advance. He said militants failed in their attempt to breach the Red Zone and confirmed that the district of Nushki had been fully cleared, with operations launched earlier based on actionable intelligence.
