Gulzar Dost, a well known social activist and convener of Kech Civil Society, was arrested on Monday in a wider effort by the Pakistani state to silence dissent in Balochistan. In keeping with The Balochistan Put up, Dost was taken from his house in Turbat throughout a raid by the Counter-Terrorism Division (CTD) and later charged with what The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) says had been “false and politically motivated” allegations. It has demanded his speedy launch.Dost was arrested early Monday morning throughout a CTD raid at his residence in Turbat. He was then introduced earlier than a courtroom and charged, although the precise nature of the costs has not been publicly detailed.In a submit on X, BYC described Dost as a peaceable citizen who has all the time spoken up for households of forcibly disappeared individuals and victims of extrajudicial killings. “His solely ‘crime’ is standing with the oppressed,” BYC mentioned. “The state can’t tolerate that.” The committee additionally criticised the CTD, calling it a instrument of state repression used to focus on grassroots activists. It accused authorities of finishing up illegal raids, submitting faux circumstances, and utilizing pressured disappearances to suppress political voices. BYC has demanded Dost’s unconditional launch and warned that the continued focusing on of activists will solely enhance resistance within the area. “If the state thinks it could create silence in Balochistan by focusing on political activists, it’s gravely mistaken,” the group mentioned.The arrest is a part of what rights teams say is an rising sample of intimidation towards Baloch activists. Simply two days in the past, at the least 5 males had been reportedly forcibly disappeared by Pakistani safety forces throughout a collection of raids within the Kech and Gwadar districts of Balochistan. A wave of anger has swept throughout Pakistan’s troubled Balochistan province after the reported abduction and killing of younger Baloch activist Zeeshan Ahmed by navy personnel. Zeeshan had been actively campaigning for the protected return of his father, Zaheer Ahmed, who was forcibly disappeared by the Frontier Corps again in 2015.
