Four Baloch Students Abducted from Punjab and Three Youths Whisked Away in Balochistan

QUETTA: In a late-night raid on Thursday, Pakistani forces forcibly took four students from Balochistan into custody from a hostel in Lahore, subsequently transferring them to an unknown location.

The Baloch Council Punjab identified the students as Ikram Mengal, a fourth-semester student at Punjab University, and Shamraiz Badini, a law student at Superior University Lahore.

The council has condemned these illegal abductions and demanded the safe return of their peers.

Video footage released by Baloch students captures the violent nature of the abduction, showing armed individuals in civilian clothing storming the hostel and forcibly removing the students.

Eyewitnesses reported that the raid involved significant physical violence and intimidation.

While Ikram Mengal was released later, Shamraiz Badini remains missing, raising serious concerns about the ongoing safety of Baloch students in the region.

In Total four Baloch youths studying in Punjab were abducted by Pakistani forces from various locations over the past few days.

Personnel from Punjab police and intelligence agencies conducted coordinated raids on hostels housing Baloch students, subjecting them to violence and forcibly taking them away.

 Among the abducted, two students have since been recovered. Still, Shamraiz son of Fareed a resident of Noshki Balochistan and Deedag Baloch son of Younis Zehri a student in the Economics department at the University of Lahore are in the custody of Pakistani forces.

The Council of Baloch Students studying in Punjab has confirmed these disappearances, highlighting a disturbing pattern of ethnic discrimination that has seen unjustified raids and harassment against Baloch students become increasingly common.

They report that such actions have created an atmosphere of fear, making students feel unsafe in their educational environments.

Meanwhile, reports from Khuzdar district in Balochistan confirm that Pakistani security forces conducted a raid on a house in Askani Bazaar taking Wafa Manzoor Baloch and Moheem Jan Baloch into custody and making them disappear.

Wafa, who comes from a poor family and works as a tailor and Moheem a Biochemistry student at Turbat University, are now victims of enforced disappearances.

Additionally, on October 8, Pakistani forces forcibly disappeared a man named Ali Muhammad from his shop in the Awaran area of Jhao, marking yet another incident in the troubling series of abductions.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee has strongly condemned the abduction of Baloch students, saying that enforced disappearances aim to undermine the educational opportunities and potential of Baloch students.

They express concern that such acts are intended to instil fear and discourage Baloch students from pursuing their education.

The spokesperson for the Baloch Students Council Punjab emphasised that the rising incidents of enforced disappearances create a climate of fear, leaving Baloch students feeling increasingly unsafe.

They have reported that profiling and harassment of Baloch students have become routine, involving everyone from university administration to lecturers and clerks.

In light of these events, the Baloch Solidarity Committee reiterated their right to peaceful protest against state oppression, stating they would not remain silent in the face of such injustices.

They pledged to continue advocating for the safety and rights of Baloch students across the country, demanding accountability from the authorities and calling for an end to the systematic targeting of their Baloch people, in particular Baloch students.