In Balochistan, the state has adopted repression and violence as central strategies to suppress political resistance and the independence movement. As a result of this policy, armed groups have emerged under the patronage of state institutions, generating fear, division, and uncertainty within Baloch society. Among the most prominent faces of these groups are Shafiq Mengal and his brother Ata-ur-Rehman, who have allegedly led a death squad operating in and around Khuzdar. Recently, the Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the killing of Ata-ur-Rehman, bringing this issue once again into the public spotlight.
Following the surge in Baloch resistance after 2008, state institutions began using death squad-style groups to counter the movement. These groups have been accused of grave human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, kidnappings for ransom, promoting religious extremism, extortion, and illegal land seizures. The group operating in Khuzdar, reportedly led by Shafiq Mengal, has been linked to all of these activities, with Ata-ur-Rehman’s role repeatedly highlighted in multiple reports.
One of the most disturbing outcomes of these alleged activities was the discovery of a mass grave in 2014 in the Tutak area, from which over 140 mutilated bodies were recovered. While full identification of the victims could not be established, many observers and human rights organisations viewed this incident as part of a broader pattern of state-sponsored violent operations. The issue has also been raised in parliamentary forums, but due to the apparent alignment of these groups with state policy, no legal action has been taken against them.
It is on public record that despite serious criminal cases and judicial orders against Ata-ur-Rehman and his associates, state institutions failed to apprehend them. On the contrary, interactions between caretaker prime ministers, interior ministers, and these individuals—along with public statements in their defence—have raised serious questions about the state’s priorities.
These state-backed groups have not only failed to eliminate armed resistance in Balochistan but have also severely damaged the region’s social fabric. Tribal enmities have intensified, political forces have fractured, and the general population lives under a constant sense of insecurity. Figures like Ata-ur-Rehman are considered “national criminals” by many in Baloch political and social circles, due to the destructive impact of their activities, not only on the freedom movement but on the structure of Baloch society itself.
If the state genuinely seeks peace and stability in Balochistan, it must abandon its patronage of such non-state actors and place the supremacy of human rights at the core of its policy framework.