New Delhi:
India has rejected Pakistan’s allegations that New Delhi is behind the ethnic violence raging in the neighbouring country where the latest in a series of bloodshed is a train hijacking by the Baloch rebels. In strong remarks, India has snubbed Pakistan after it hinted at India’s role in fomenting trouble in the restive Balochistan region.
Pakistan must look inwards instead of blaming others, the Indian government has said, echoing its previous stance that Islamabad harboured a terror hotbed.
“We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan. The whole world knows where the epicenter of global terrorism lies. Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures on to others,” read a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs.
The government’s response came after a senior Pakistani official accused India of “sponsoring terrorism” and trying to destabilise its neighbouring countries.
The accusation followed the hijacking of the Jaffar Express by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) during a 30-hour journey from Quetta to Peshawar. The siege lasted about 30 hours, and 21 hostages and four security personnel were killed.
Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said the train attack was orchestrated from abroad, but did not directly implicate India. He said the rebels were in contact with their handlers based in Afghanistan throughout the train siege.
When asked if Pakistan had changed its policy from blaming India in the past for BLA activity, he denied and said its accusations against India hold even today.
“There is no shift in our policy. And again, the facts have not changed. India is involved in sponsoring terrorism against Pakistan. What I was referring to was, in this particular incident, we have evidence of calls being traced to Afghanistan. This is what I said,” said the Pakistani official addressing reporters.
The BLA is among the several armed rebel groups active in the southwestern mineral-rich region of Balochistan, the largest and most sparsely populated Pakistan province. These groups have been fighting for independence since they were forced to merge with Pakistan during the Partition.
Violence has increased in the past few months with the Baloch rebels adopting a more aggressive stance, targeting security and Chinese-funded infrastructure. The region has also seen hundreds of forced disappearances allegedly by state forces, adding to the discontent among the locals against the Pakistan government.
