Insurgency in Baloch areas of Balochistan — way forward
The analysis scene in Pakistan over situation in Balochistan, especially the former Kalat State, is in overdrive. Most analysts lament the policy adopted by Pakistan over decades in dealing with Baloch 'grievances' and 'sense of deprivation', blaming this or that civil or military government. Some are crying hoarse that the issue has 'political solution' only, with kinetic response in the past and now being a blunder. When grilled, this segment does not have cogent solutions and suggests empowering the same tried and tested political faces-cum-militant sponsors-cum-Sardars, who are part of the problem, have remained so for years, and are squarely responsible for it. Sardar Akhtar Mengal and his father Sardar Attaullah Mengal are cases in point. So, let us restate the problem candidly, without hiding in the sands of time, geography and ethnicity. One, the obtaining situation is an 'insurgency' limited mainly to the erstwhile Kalat State of Balochistan, wi...