Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmaker Abdul Rehman Khetran has urged the Pakistani prime minister to consider replacing Balochistan’s chief minister and imposing governor’s rule.
The Balochistan government had “failed 100 per cent”, Khetran said in an interview, describing conditions in Balochistan as worse than those in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Khetran, who was removed as public health engineering minister in July on Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti’s advice, also rejected suggestions that he supported the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).
“The BLA is killing our soldiers, and when I come under attack, it causes us anguish,” he said, adding that “some people are creating the impression that we support the BLA, which is entirely false”.
Khetran said moving residents out of their homes would not improve security unless local communities were taken into confidence. He also said the military’s spokesman relied on feedback from Balochistan when conducting press conferences.
Government officials, including Chief Minister Bugti, maintain that state authority remains intact in Balochistan. However, lawmakers from both governing and opposition parties have questioned that position, citing insecurity and restrictions on movement.
Last month, opposition lawmaker Younus Aziz Zehri called for an assembly briefing on the security situation, saying people were struggling to travel freely. He also rejected calls for political representatives to form armed militias, arguing that protecting citizens was the state’s responsibility.
“Providing security to citizens is the responsibility of the state, the government and the forces,” Zehri said.