He addressed a press conference in Islamabad and said that the government’s policy toward individuals who take up arms was clear. He added that the state remained open to those who chose the path of forgiveness.
CM Bugti questioned whether a policy of reconciliation with militants could ever be justified. He asked whether the state should allow armed groups to reach Islamabad. His comments came a day after security forces killed twelve terrorists during an intelligence based operation in the Kalat district.
He said that militants from Balochistan had been freed and resettled in 2018 under a policy similar to the one used for the banned Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to him, many of these militants continued to fight the state and were responsible for shedding the blood of innocent people.
The chief minister said that an anti state narrative had been promoted against Pakistan, its armed forces and the Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir.
He criticised Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and said that his position did not allow him to become part of that narrative. He urged him to stop constant protests and to focus on providing relief to the people of the province.
CM Bugti supported the recent statement by the Inter Services Public Relations director general, who had described Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf founder and former prime minister Imran Khan as mentally ill and a national security threat.
He said that around nine hundred terror incidents in Balochistan had resulted in the deaths of two hundred and eighty civilians, two hundred and five security personnel and six officers, two of whom belonged to the province.
He added that security forces had conducted thousands of intelligence based operations. According to him, seven hundred and six terrorists were killed while attempting to infiltrate from Afghanistan in order to plan attacks. He said that around ten bodies of militants still remained at the border.
He emphasised that terrorists would not succeed because of a disciplined army and strong leadership. He said that those who planned attacks in the name of religion would fail and he criticised political narratives that targeted military leaders.
CM Bugti said that he did not like calling any politician anti state or a security threat, but he asked whether political actors needed to reflect on their own conduct.
He said that the fight against terrorism was the responsibility of every citizen and he urged the nation to stand with its security forces.
