The QDA land grabbing mafia brutalities in New Kahan

The Pakistan army, representatives of Pakistan at Balochistan assembly and the QDA (Quetta Development Authorities) mafia headed by GD Imran Zarkoon and wing commander Pakistan FC Usman have started demolishing the houses of Marri Baloch in New Kahan Hazar Ganji Quetta. They have been plotting to destroy New Kahan from past many years but they’ve accelerated their evil action in past few months.

Thousands of Marri Baloch have been residing in New Kahan Quetta after their return from Afghanistan in the early 90s. These Marri Baloch along with their leader later Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri and hundreds of other Baloch migrated to Afghanistan in the 70s when Pakistan army launched offensives in Kohistan Marri region. Pakistan army killed thousands of Marri Baloch, looted their livestock and disappeared many thousands whose whereabouts remains unknown till today.

They lived in Afghanistan’s Helmand, Kandahar, and Kabul areas as political refugees until the end of Dr. Najibullah’s regime. When the Taliban took over Afghanistan they forced the Baloch national leader Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri and his followers to leave Afghanistan and go back to their own country – Balochistan.

It is worth mentioning that during their migration from Balochistan to Afghanistan Marri people suffered heavy losses at the hands Pakistan army backed Mujahideen. They have stopped the Baloch fleeing to Afghanistan looted them of cash and other valuables including women’s jewelry. Many people were also killed by the proxies of Pakistan who were buried at different locations on the way.

During their stay in Afghanistan as political refugees, Marri and other Baloch fellow comrades fought against hunger, poverty and faced many hardships. Despite all the difficulties they refused to surrender before Pakistan army. There are a number of very large graveyards of the Marri Baloch in Afghanistan because many people died due epidemic diseases, target killing of enemy forces and explosions of bombs and explosives left behind by Russian forces and fights between Afghan rival groups.

In the early 90s when Nawab Khair Marri returned to Balochistan, the Marri Baloch refugees also returned with him. They settled at Western bypass near the famous (Koh-e-Chiltan) Chiltan Mountian in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan. The Patriot Baloch leader Hyrbyair Marri has stood by the residents of New Kahan to overcome all the hardship and difficulties and helped them to stand on their own feet.

When Quetta fruits and vegetable market and bus adda (bus station) were being relocated from old bus station to Hazar Ganji, the residents of New Kahan demanded that they should be given the jobs labour work on priority bases as compared to people from other regions but the government ignored their demand and brought in labours from Pashtun and Hazara populated areas.  The residents of New Kahan recorded their peaceful and silent protest by staging a sit-in at Hazar Ganji market but the Pakistani forces attacked the peaceful protesters and arrested around 50 people. The arrested people were distributed between different police stations across Quetta overnight and the following morning they were all shifted to central Jail Mach – one of the toughest jails in Balochistan.

Both Gazzain Marri and Jangyz Marri were ministers during this time but they did not support the peaceful protest of the Marri Baloch and did not interfere when they were arrested, tortured and humiliated by the Pakistani forces. After an ordeal of three months, the residents of New Kahan were released from the Mach jail. It is either the bad luck of the people of New Kahan or a coincidence that once again they are facing eviction from their homes when Jangyz Marri is a minister at Balochistan assembly and so far there is no sign of help from him. In fact, he is also involved in the plot to evict the resident of New Kahan.

In January 2000 the Pakistani intelligence agencies killed Justice Nawaz Marri a Judge of Balochistan High Court and then lodged FIRs against Nawab Khair Marri and his sons. During a raid on Nawab Marri’s house at Arbab Karam Khan Road, witnesses heard the local police receiving orders of “shoot to kill” from the army. Nawab Marri with his great vision, statesmanship and wisdom foiled their plot to kill him and voluntarily went with them instead of offering any resistance. He was kept in Hudda central jail in Quetta for several years. Pakistani forces had also arrested and imprisoned more than 200 Marri Baloch from New Kahan and elsewhere under the pretext of the murder of Justice Nawaz Marri. However, many of the Marri Baloch after their release from prison said they were not asked a single question about the murder of Justice Marri. In fact, they were questioned about why they went to Afghanistan, what did they do there? They were also offered amnesty if they said they would not follow Nawab Marri and his sons anymore.

While most of the men from New Kahan were in prison, the Pakistani forces started sending threating letter and leaflets to the residents of New Kahan to vacate the area or face the consequences. The residents stood firm and refuse to leave their houses and the state forces and land mafia groups eventually abandon their conspiracy against the Marri Baloch of New Kahan.

However, one again from past few months the Pakistani security forces and the QDA (Quetta Development Authority) land grabbing mafia group headed by Imran Zarkoon, wing commander FC Usman and the stooges of Pakistan at Balochistan assembly warning and treating the residents of New Kahan to leave the area. Many houses have already been demolished in the name of development.