Authorities in Balochistan have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal, along with his relatives Asad Mengal and Gurgain Mengal, in connection with the killing of Atta-ur-Rehman Mengal, a leader of an alleged state-backed armed group.
The complaint was lodged by Muhammad Jan, a resident of Wadh, who alleged that Atta-ur-Rehman’s convoy was attacked by Asad Mengal, Gurgain Mengal, and their associates in the Aranji area of Khuzdar district.
The FIR includes charges under Sections 302 (murder), 324 (attempt to murder), 107 (abetment), 148 (rioting with deadly weapons), and 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Atta-ur-Rehman Mengal—son of former caretaker chief minister Naseer Mengal and brother of Shafiq Mengal, a notorious figure accused of leading state-backed armed networks in Balochistan—was shot dead in Aranji on 22 June. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) later claimed responsibility for the attack.
In a statement issued a day later, BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch said the operation was carried out by the group’s Fateh Squad with support from its intelligence wing, Zirab, following “long-term intelligence gathering, continuous surveillance and thorough investigation.”
The BLA described Atta-ur-Rehman as a “national traitor” and a “key operative” in what it called the Pakistani state’s “death squad networks” in Khuzdar and Wadh. The group accused him of involvement in enforced disappearances, the targeting of Baloch students and activists, and the facilitation of mass graves.
Following the killing, a heavy security presence has been reported in both Wadh and Khuzdar, where government and military officials have continued to visit Atta-ur-Rehman’s native village. During Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti’s visit, a near-curfew situation was observed in Khuzdar.
Bugti condemned the killing as a “cowardly act of terrorism” and offered condolences to the Mengal family. “The perpetrators will be brought to justice,” he said.