Public Concerns and Protests Over Fluctuating Fuel Prices

The Balochistan government has imposed Section 144 across the province for 30 days, citing the security situation.

Effective immediately, a notification issued by the provincial government announced a complete ban on gatherings of five or more people, including sit-ins, processions, and rallies. The restrictions also prohibit pillion riding, the use of tinted glass on vehicles, and the operation of unregistered motorcycles.

Furthermore, the order bans the display or use of weapons and prohibits covering faces in public with masks, mufflers, or any other means that obstruct identification.

In a statement, Special Assistant to the Home Department Babar Khan Yousafzai said security forces have been placed on high alert. He warned that any “misadventure” by groups the state refers to as “Fitna-al-Khawarij” (Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan) and “Fitna-al-Hindustan” (Balochistan-based terrorist groups) would be “met with full force.”

The move follows recent violence in the province. Last week, five soldiers, including a major, were martyred during a sanitisation operation in Barkhan district. In April, nine workers at a copper and gold project in Chagai were killed in an armed attack by unidentified assailants.