Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday urged dialogue to resolve Balochistan’s grievances and stressed the need to bring back people “misled” by terrorists.
Speaking at the Balochistan Grand Jirga in Quetta, Sharif invited Baloch elders to sit down with the government to identify and address the province’s issues.
“We must make efforts to bring back the people who were misled (by the terrorists) onto the wrong track,” Sharif said.
“If Balochistan has any grievance, it should be resolved by becoming brothers with brothers,” he added. “Terrorists are thirsty for blood, and they do not care about the development of Pakistan.”
Addressing the Baloch elders, Sharif said: “You may have complaints, but the terrorists know nothing but brutality. We all have to make the best effort to bring back those who have strayed.”
Sharif pledged that no injustice would be done to Balochistan under his government.
“The elders of Balochistan should sit together and talk. Let us know what the problems are that we should resolve,” the prime minister said.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced that Balochistan’s share in the PKR 1000 billion national development program for the next financial year would be PKR 250 billion. He promised these funds would be spent with transparency.
According to the military’s media wing, Sharif also visited the Command & Staff College in Quetta and addressed faculty and graduating officers.
The prime minister praised the armed forces for their bravery, professionalism, and sacrifices during Operation Bunyanun Marsoos, saying their conduct has earned the nation’s highest honors.
Sharif also accused India of intensifying its campaign of terrorism inside Pakistan through proxies, referred to by the military as Fitna al Hindustan.
“All such nefarious and ill designs of India and Fitna al Hindustan will be crushed,” he said.
Security in Balochistan has worsened in recent months, as militants involved in a long-running insurgency have stepped up attacks.
Earlier this month, Pakistan accused India of its alleged involvement in the brutal attack on a schoolchildren’s van in Khuzdar, which killed eight people, including six children, and injured over 30, describing the incident as a stark example of Indian-sponsored terrorism targeting innocent civilians and aimed at destabilizing the region.
Last month, military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of activating its “assets” to increase terrorist attacks, presenting what he called “irrefutable evidence” of Indian state-sponsored terrorism directed by Indian military personnel.
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