BYC leaders’ arrest sets off protests, strikes in faraway cities

Use of excessive force could prove to be counterproductive for country, say analysts

STATE OF THE NATION

March 25, 2025

THE recent arrest of Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leaders has not only triggered a wave of shutter-down strikes in various cities of Balochistan but has also sparked protests in Karachi — a city that has largely remained unaffected by unrest in the country’s largest province.

Karachi police had to use force to disperse a rally held in front of the Karachi Press Club (KPC) to protest the arrest of BYC President Dr Mahrang Baloch and her colleagues in Quetta.

According to analysts, the arrest of peaceful civilian leaders — particularly women activists — has struck a raw nerve, even in distant cities like Karachi. They warned that the use of excessive force could prove counterproductive for the nation.

Protesters hold aloft pictures of Dr Mahrang Baloch during a protest in front of the Karachi Press Club

The BYC had announced a demonstration outside the KPC against the “illegal detention” of its key leaders, who were arrested on Saturday in Quetta, a day after the group claimed that three protesters had died due to police action.

Subsequently, Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi imposed a ban on all gatherings across the metropolis under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. As BYC supporters attempted to reach the KPC, they were intercepted by police at a nearby roundabout, where law enforcement personnel met them with resistance.

After an hour-long protest, police began dispersing the demonstrators and took Sammi Deen Baloch and other BYC supporters into custody.

BYC supporter Sadaf Ameer, who alleged that her father, Ameer Bakhsh, had been forcibly taken away, told Dawn.com: “Before the protest even began, a heavy police contingent arrived and subjected us to torture.”

“They arrested and took away Sammi Deen Baloch and others,” she added, explaining that they had come to demand the release of Mahrang, Bebarg, and others.

“We came peacefully, and we were protesting peacefully, but the state cannot tolerate us protesting peacefully. This is why the state has been violent with us and has taken Sammi Baloch and others.”

Meanwhile, police used tear gas to disperse protesters in Balochistan’s Panjgur district, where a shutter-down strike continued for the third consecutive day following a BYC call for protests.

Shutter-down strikes were observed in various cities of Balochistan in response to the BYC’s call.

In a post on X, the BYC stated that the protest in Panjgur had entered its third day “amid firing and state violence,” with demonstrators demanding an end to “state repression, enforced disappearances, and the targeting of peaceful protesters.”

Following the crackdown, strikes continued for a second consecutive day in several cities, including Turbat, Mastung, Kalat, Kharan, Chagai, Dalbandin, and Dhadar.

In Turbat, protesters blocked the Turbat-Karachi highway, disrupting traffic, while in Hub, demonstrators blocked the Quetta-Karachi highway at Bhawani to protest Dr Mahrang Baloch’s arrest.