Baloch militants kill 9 passengers from Punjab in southwest Pakistan
Islamabad/Karachi (PTI): Baloch insurgents shot and killed nine passengers from Punjab after offloading them from passenger buses in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, authorities said on Friday.
The incident took place late on Thursday on the national highway in the Sur-Dakai area of Zhob district, said Assistant Commissioner Zhob Naveed Alam.
The armed insurgents stopped two Punjab-bound buses and checked the ID cards of travellers before offloading nine passengers and shooting them dead.
“Nine people abducted from both coaches have been killed, and their bodies have been recovered,” Alam said, adding that all nine belonged to different parts of the Punjab province.
The Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF), a banned outfit known for attacking the security forces, claimed responsibility for the gruesome murders.
“We have moved the nine bodies to the hospital for post-mortem and burial procedures,” Alam said.
Security forces suspended traffic on the highway and began a large-scale search operation to locate the perpetrators.
Condemning the killing of nine passengers, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti said that the killing of innocents based on identity is an "unforgivable crime".
“The terrorists have proven that they are not human beings, but cowardly beasts. The blood of innocents will not go in vain on the soil of Balochistan. The state will not allow these murderers to hide even underground,” he said.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the incident and said terrorists have shown the worst barbarity by targeting innocent people.
This is not the first time that insurgents have targeted people belonging to the Punjab province and passenger buses plying on different highways in Balochistan.
Meanwhile, insurgents also carried out three other terrorist attacks in Quetta, Loralai and Mastung, but a spokesperson for the Balochistan government Shahid Rind claimed security forces repulsed these attacks.
Unconfirmed reports in the Balochistan media claimed that insurgents had struck at several places in the province during the night and engaged security forces by attacking check posts, government installations, police stations, banks, and communication towers.
While Rind confirmed the attacks, he said there were no reports of casualties in any of them.
Bordering Iran and Afghanistan, Balochistan is home to a long-running violent insurgency.
Baloch insurgent groups frequently carry out attacks targeting security personnel, government projects and the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in this oil and mineral-rich province.
In March, five people working on long body trailers were shot dead in the Kalmat area near Gwadar port, while in February, insurgents offloaded seven passengers belonging to the Punjab province and killed them on the spot in the Barkhan area.
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Wrong to ban meat sale on Aug 15: Ajit Pawar on order by some civic bodies
Mumbai/Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Aug 13 (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has expressed displeasure over some civic bodies ordering the closure of slaughterhouses and shops selling meat on August 15, saying it was wrong to impose such a ban.
Such types of restrictions are generally imposed considering faith-related sensitivities on occasions like Ashadhi Ekadashi, Mahashivratri, Mahavir Jayanti etc, Pawar said, adding people eat vegetarian and non-vegetarian food in Maharashtra.
"It is wrong to impose such a ban. In major cities, people of different castes and religions reside. If it is an emotional issue, then people accept it (ban) for a day. But if you clamp such orders on Maharashtra Day, Independence Day and Republic Day, then it is difficult," Pawar told reporters on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day, the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation announced the closure of slaughterhouses, outlets and shops selling meat within city limits on two days - August 15 and 20 - in view of festivals.
It stated the closure was ordered on August 15 on the occasion of Gokul Ashtami, a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna, and August 20, which marks the beginning of 'Paryushan Parva'- a key festival of the Jain community characterised by fasting and prayers.
On these two days, there will be a ban on slaughtering animals and selling meat in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city, the civic corporation stated, and warned of action for violation.
The order comes on the heels of the Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) in Thane district near Mumbai directing the closure of meat shops on August 15.
There are reports that the Malegaon Municipal Corporation, too, issued such an order.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray has said the KDMC commissioner should be suspended because it is not their issue to decide on vegetarian or non-vegetarian food consumption.
"It is our decision what to eat and not to eat on Independence Day. We will definitely eat non-veg food. The commissioner should instead address the issue of potholes on streets," Thackeray said.
NCP (SP) leader Jitendra Awhad has said he will consume non-veg food to protest against the ban by the KDMC.
