QUETTA: Balochistan former chief minister Dr Malik Baloch raised a point of order in the Balochistan Assembly on Thursday, stating that there were 34 bodies lying in Civil Hospital Quetta, and those were not being shown to the relatives.
Thirteen of the bodies were buried in Kasi graveyard at night. When people demanded possession of bodies, they were baton-charged. It was unprecedented, and such actions had never occurred before, he added.
The Balochistan Assembly session began on Thursday under the chairmanship of Deputy Speaker Ghazala Gola.
Dr Malik mentioned that Dr Ilyas, his son, and his son-in-law had been taken into custody. He said that with such actions, the situation in Balochistan would not improve.
In response, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti stated that terrorists should be referred to as terrorists, and any mention of them as ‘Fidayeen’ in the assembly should be condemned. He explained that terrorists, who attacked the train in Bolan, were divided in two groups. Some stayed behind, while the rest fled to their hideouts. There was an exchange of fire between the security forces and the fleeing terrorists, which resulted in the death of 23 people. Their bodies were shifted to Quetta for DNA test and identification as per law. He pointed out that in the past, many terrorists killed in encounters with the forces were included in the list of missing persons, so identification was necessary. The government buried the bodies through Edhi service until the DNA reports came in.
He also mentioned that the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) had formed a group and attacked the morgue, forcibly taking away the bodies. Their main goal was to politicise the bodies. The people who were killed were dreaded terrorists. He noted that the government had established a cell within the interior ministry to identify individuals and government employees who were involved in inciting youth against the state. Dr Ilyas Baloch’s name was also included in this list. He said it was a serious crime for a government employee to incite people against the state, and the matter would be thoroughly investigated.
Meanwhile, Dr Ayesha Faiz, the police surgeon at Civil Hospital Quetta, said on Thursday that protesters from the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) broke the lock and door of the morgue and took six bodies, which had been brought to the hospital after the attack on the Jaffar Express.
The police conducted raids in various areas of the city and managed to recover some of the bodies. According to the government, the bodies of five attackers involved in the suicide bombing on the Jaffar Express train on March 11 and a female suicide bomber, who attacked the Frontier Corps Wing Commander’s vehicle in Kalat on March 3, were brought to Civil Hospital Quetta. The bodies had been kept in the morgue for a few days.
Police sources reported that the protesters successfully took the bodies despite efforts to stop them. BYC leader Bebarg Baloch said police baton-charged the protesters carrying the bodies, injuring two women and arresting several, including two women. He said the BYC and the families of missing persons had been protesting at the hospital for two days, demanding access to the bodies. He claimed the hospital administration and police were uncooperative, which led to a large number of protesters gathering at the hospital on Wednesday evening and taking the bodies themselves.
Bebarg also claimed that police had recovered most of the bodies from the protesters in areas like Secretariat Chowk and Saryab Road.
Meanwhile, some protesters went to the Kasi cemetery in Quetta amid speculation that several bodies had been secretly buried the previous day.
During a press conference, Balochistan Chief Minister said, “After the terrorists who were killed at Mashkaf during the operation, we had two options. One was to leave the bodies there, and the other was to legally bring the bodies back and conduct DNA tests to identify the individuals who were fighting against the state of Pakistan. Some terrorists were killed whose identities could not be determined, and according to the law, they were buried through Edhi service. Once their identities are confirmed through DNA, it will be communicated.”
Earlier, the head of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee Dr Mahrang, during a press conference at Quetta Press Club, alleged the bodies of missing persons were discarded under the guise of operations. She said that the families had decided to exhume the bodies for identification.
Meanwhile, Bebarg Baloch of the BYC and his brother Hammal Baloch were taken into custody Thursday morning. The BYC is currently holding a sit-in protest outside the University of Balochistan.