ATC Extends Remand for BYC Chief and Organizers

A special court for counter-terrorism in Quetta has prolonged the detention of Dr. Mahrang Baloch, head of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), along with other organizers, by an additional 15 days. They will remain in police custody.

The Saryab Police Station has filed a report detailing infractions of the Anti-Terrorism Act’s Sections 7 and 11W, in conjunction with 16 sections of the Pakistan Penal Code.

These accusations encompass terrorism, murder and attempted murder, promoting violence and revolt, causing public unrest, spreading racial animosity, and damaging property.

Dr. Mahrang, along with 17 others, was taken into custody and is being held at the Quetta District Jail in accordance with Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance.

The case implicates Dr. Mahrang and the BYC leadership in aiding rioters who allegedly shot at law enforcement officers, innocent people, and even their fellow protestors. These actions purportedly led to three fatalities and left 15 officers wounded.

The group also faces accusations regarding their involvement in a violent incident at the Civil Hospital. They are alleged to have forcibly removed the bodies of individuals involved in the Jaffer Express train bombing.

The police report concerning the Civil Hospital incident, filed at the Civil Lines Police Station in Quetta in March, asserts that a group of approximately 100 to 150 individuals stormed the medical facility. Allegedly incited by the BYC leadership, they seized the bodies of the Jaffer Express train attackers from the hospital morgue.

Previously, on July 8, a Quetta ATC had remanded Dr. Mahrang and fellow activists to police custody for a period of 10 days, following their initial three-month detention.

During the recent court appearance, six activists, including Gulzadi, Beebow Baloch, Sibghatullah Shahji, Ghaffar Baloch, and Beberg Baloch, were brought before ATC Judge Muhammad Ali Mubeen.

Responding to a police request, the judge ordered Dr. Mahrang and her fellow activists to remain in police custody for another 15 days. The BYC organizers are now scheduled to remain in detention until the beginning of August.

Earlier in March, more than 100 members of civil society appealed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, urging him to intervene immediately and secure the release of the detained BYC leaders.

In a shared letter addressed to PM Shehbaz, the signatories denounced the detentions, deeming them an “attempt to silence voices advocating for an end to forced disappearances and for the fundamental rights of the people of Balochistan.”