Bodies of slain passengers in Balochistan bus killing sent to Punjab hometowns
President, PM and CM Balochistan condemn the terror act, vow full action against the culprits
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The bodies of nine bus passengers who were kidnapped and killed in Balochistan’s Sardhaka area last night were recovered and transported to their hometowns in Punjab on Friday morning, officials said.
Last night, at least nine passengers travelling on two Punjab-bound coaches were abducted and killed by unidentified armed men in the Sur-Dakai area, situated on the border between Balochistan’s Zhob and Loralai districts.
Provincial government spokesperson Shahid Rind also confirmed the incident and said that Fitna-al-Hindustan — a term the government uses for terrorist organisations in Balochistan — had carried out attacks at three different places — Kakat, Mastung and Sur-Dakai.
The Balochistan Liberation Front, a banned outfit, later claimed responsibility for the attack. A spokesman for the group said it had killed the nine individuals after blocking the highway between Musakhail-Makhtar and Khajuri.
Assistant Commissioner (AC) Naveed Alam told media that the bodies of all nine passengers were handed over to a political agent in the Sakhi Sarwar district of Dera Ghazi Khan.
He said that seven of the passengers had been identified, but two could not be due to a lack of documents. “The terrorists must have taken the passengers’ identification documents with them,” AC Alam said.
Of the seven passengers identified, two were residents of Lodhran, while one passenger each was a resident of DG Khan, Gujrat, Attock, Khanewal and Gujranwala.
Leaders condemn tragedy, vow action: The country’s top leaders strongly condemned the incident and vowed action against the perpetrators “at all costs”.
In a statement today, President Asif Ali Zardari said: “This barbarity is part of Fitna-al-Hindustan’s evil conspiracy to spill blood in Pakistan”.
He reaffirmed commitment to “clear the land of Fitna-al-Hindustan and its facilitators at all costs”.
Similarly, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement issued by his office: “We will deal with terrorists with full force. The blood of innocent people will be avenged.”
The premier added that the killing of unarmed civilians was a blatant act of terrorism by Fitna-al-Hindustan. “With resolve, unity, and strength, we will confront the scourge of terrorism and uproot it completely,” the prime minister said.
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti also strongly condemned the incident, calling it “blatant terrorism”. “The killing of innocent civilians based on Pakistani identity is an unforgivable crime,” Bugti said, vowing that the response would be “severe”.
“The terrorists have proven that they are not human beings, but cowardly beasts,” he said, adding that the state “would not even let these murderers hide underground”.
The chief minister added: “All networks of terrorists who are the sponsors of Fitna-al-Hindustan will be destroyed.” Noting that this was a “state war”, he vowed decisive action.
CM Bugti further vowed to crush “every plan of terrorism” with strength, determination and unity. “Balochistan will become a graveyard for enemies.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expressed deep grievance over the incident, urging the state to seek a “political solution” to long-standing issues in Balochistan.
In a statement posted on X, the HRCP said, “This wanton violence against labourers and common citizens is deplorable and must cease immediately.”
