Pakistan’s Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, has accused protesters from Balochistan of using a sit-in in Islamabad to pursue political objectives.
Speaking in the National Assembly, Chaudhry said that while the government was open to dialogue, the demonstrators were unwilling to engage. He added that the sit-in outside the Islamabad Press Club had forced the closure of a section of road between Polyclinic Hospital and the club, causing disruption.
The minister said the government had attempted to reach out through different channels, including human rights leaders, but without progress. He argued that some of the protesters’ demands were beyond the government’s jurisdiction, while others were under judicial consideration. According to him, the Commission on Missing Persons was already working on the issue, and the government was willing to continue discussions.
Families of missing persons, however, rejected Chaudhry’s remarks, accusing him of misrepresenting their protest. They said they had been demonstrating peacefully in Islamabad for more than 50 days, demanding the release of detained leaders of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) and an end to enforced disappearances in Balochistan.
The families said they had repeatedly communicated their demands to the authorities, but instead of engagement, they had faced police restrictions and attempts to suppress their protest. They accused the government of blocking access to the press club and of hiding their demonstration from public view by surrounding the area with tents and buses.
Responding directly to Chaudhry’s comments, the protesters said that while the minister expressed concern over a road closure, he showed no sympathy for families searching for loved ones who had been missing for years. They urged government officials to meet them at the protest site, listen to their demands, and resolve the issue.
The families further alleged that Chaudhry’s statement was part of wider efforts by officials, police, and media to undermine their peaceful protest.