- The only demand that the Balochistan Liberation Army had in the region was that, in 1948, Balochistan was forcibly annexed by the Pakistani state.
- Balochistan is the most resource-rich region of Pakistan—the majority of the country’s minerals come from Balochistan.
- It would be correct to say that the Pakistani government has lost ground control over Balochistan, and if the Balochi people further intensify their struggle to take back their land, this may inevitably happen.
- Pakistan is also involving external actors like China in leading this exploitation, which has led the Balochi people to fight against the Pakistani government.
Pakistan, a country that came into existence in 1947 and a country that succeeded out of mainland India, was created as a theocratic state. When the country was being created, there were a lot of promises that were shown to the world and also to the people who were to be part of Pakistan that this country had everything it needed to be a good, prospering nation. From rich Lanka of Sindh to Alluvial lands by Indus.
But in a remarkable turnaround in 75+ years of Pakistan’s history, the country has failed to deliver on its promises. The country has become a failed state, and a country that was once the sponsor of terrorism is now witnessing terrorism in its backyard. This further echoes the words of Hillary Clinton back in 2011, who said that Pakistan, which is nurturing terrorism—”snakes in their backyard”—will one day see them turning against their masters.
Recently, we have all seen that Pakistan has been facing a significant political and economic crisis. The political crisis of Pakistan is deeply linked to its economic crisis because, in its 75+ years of history, no single government of Pakistan has been able to complete its term. This means that democracy has failed vehemently inside Pakistan, and this political instability has created a pretext for economic instability. A country that has great agricultural land, a country that has an abundance of water as per its population, is now failing to deliver. This further suggests that the country has not been futuristic in terms of planning its decisions for the future.
Now, amidst the ongoing political and economic challenges, a new challenge has emerged—a security threat inside Pakistan. At present, it would be correct to say that Pakistan is facing one of the worst security crises in its history. Or, it would also be correct to say that Pakistan is a country whose security is greatly threatened at present. This is because actors like the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) have been at war against the Pakistani state.
It is important to understand what is leading to this war. Pakistan, as usual, has resorted to its blame game, claiming that the Indian government is nefariously involved in this. The problem is not just the accusations Pakistan is making against India, but the greater problem is that there is no self-acceptance from the Pakistani side—that it is their government, over the last 75 years, that has led to this crisis. The rebels of the Balochistan Liberation Army and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan are demanding their rights inside Pakistan against the Pakistani government, which has failed to be successful.
The only demand that the Balochistan Liberation Army had in the region was that, in 1948, Balochistan was forcibly annexed by the Pakistani state. The Balochi people have never been given fair political and economic representation. Balochistan is the most resource-rich region of Pakistan—the majority of the country’s minerals come from Balochistan. However, the population share of the Balochi people is very low, and they are against the economic exploitation that the Pakistani government is carrying out. More importantly, Pakistan is also involving external actors like China in leading this exploitation, which has led the Balochi people to fight against the Pakistani government.
Just last week, we saw how the Balochistan Liberation Army carried out one of its biggest acts by taking over the first stage of the Jafar Express in Pakistan. The Balochistan Liberation Army has already claimed that more than 100 Pakistani soldiers have died. And now, just a day later, we have seen one more attack by the Balochistan Liberation Army on a military convoy of the Pakistani army in the Noshki region. Here again, the Balochistan Liberation Army has claimed that 100 Pakistani soldiers have died in this attack. And considering all these claims by BLA, more than 200+ Pakistan soldiers died last week alone. It would be correct to say that the Pakistani government has lost ground control over Balochistan, and if the Balochi people further intensify their struggle to take back their land, this may inevitably happen.
Along with this, the TTP is also attacking the Pakistani state and army in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region. So, what does this suggest? It suggests that the Pakistani state is absolutely in crisis and that the government of Pakistan has failed to provide basic security to its people.
But this leads to a further important question—why is this happening in Pakistan?
This is happening only because Pakistan has had a great obsession with India. The only problem with Pakistan is that it demanded a new country, but it could not separate itself from the roots of mainland India. One may artificially try to create a nation, but a nation-state cannot be separated from its historical and cultural identity. This is exactly what is happening with Pakistan. Pakistan has been able to create its state, but it has not been able to remove India from its psyche. This is why there has always been an obsession with Pakistan towards India, which is why Pakistan has been involved in supporting non-state actors to create disruptions across India. Though the Indian government has been able to neutralize and contain these threats, Pakistan is now getting a taste of its own medicine. The rebels it once created are now acting against their masters.
This entire saga tells us that a nation cannot just be created based on a charismatic leader or by merely winning the support of people. A nation must have a perfect confluence of history, culture, and civilisation, all leading to the spirit of nation-building. The problem with Pakistan is that while it has managed to create a state, it has failed to fulfil the other parameters necessary for a strong and stable nation, and at present it seems that Pakistan has lost its opportunity to address these challenges, and due to these challenges have evolved to take a much bigger form which is engulfing the whole of Pakistan.
References:
- https://www.eurasiantimes.com/5-pakistan-fc-soldiers-killed-in-balochistan-as-bla-insurgents-conduct-another-deadly-strikes-on-pak-army/?amp
- https://www.news18.com/world/bla-claims-execution-of-214-jaffar-express-hostages-vows-continued-attacks-9262120.html
- https://www.idsa.in/publisher/comments/is-pakistan-a-failing-state/
Aayush Pal is a freelance writer on contemporary geopolitical developments. The views expressed in his work are entirely his own.
Dhruv Ashok 
Yogesh GS & Pranav S