QUETTA: On the eve of elections, violence engulfed Pakistan’s largest province Balochistan as two powerful bomb blasts outside the offices of election candidates in Pishin and Qilla Saifullah — a district bordering Afghanistan — claimed 28 lives and injured over 50 people within a span of two hours.

These two explosions were in addition to at least half a dozen incidents, particularly a targeted attack on Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) leader Hafiz Hamdullah in Qila Abdullah, of election violence across the restive province.

However, Qila Abdullah Deputy Commissioner Zakir Ali said the district administration had no knowledge about the alleged attack on the senior JUI-F leader.

On the other hand, officials said unidentified individuals parked an explosive-laden motorbike outside the office of Asfandyar Kakar, an independent candidate for PB-47 (Pishin-I), in Khanozai area, which blew up as his supporters arrived for a meeting to finalise the names of polling agents. Initially, 17 people were killed and 24 injured.

JUI-F leader Hamdullah survives gun attack in Qila Abdullah; multiple grenade assaults reported across restive province

“We have first received 14 bodies in the hospital,” Dr Habibullah Kakar told Dawn. He added that four more injured succumbed to their injuries in the hospital. He said that almost all the injured were shifted to Sandeman Provincial Hospital, Quetta.

Pishin Deputy Commissioner retired captain Jumma Dad Khan said, “It was a very powerful explosion; the bodies of most of the victims were torn apart and spread over a radius of some 200 meters.”

He clarified that the bombing was not a suicide attack, as a motorcycle was used in the blast. The independent candidate, Asfandyar, was not in his election office when it was targeted. “I was on my way to Khanozai from my native village Barshore when the blast took place,” Asfandyar Kakar told Dawn.

“The death toll rose to 28 in both the motorcycle explosions and injuries to around 40,” Zahid Saleem, additional chief secretary of home and tribal affairs, confirmed.

Qila Saifullah blast

The bombing in Pishin was followed by a second blast close to the office of Maulana Abdul Wasay, the JUI-F provincial chief. Officials said a similar method was used in the bombing, with an explosive-laden motorcycle parked close to the election office of the JUI-F candidate. “Large numbers of JUI-F workers and local leaders were present in the office and attending a meeting when the explosion went off,” Abdul Nafey Kakar, a local journalist in Qila Saifullah told Dawn. Due to its impact, the bodies were charred and torn beyond recognition.

“Ten people were killed on the spot while two injured succumbed to their wounds in the hospital while they were being moved to Quetta,” Qila Saifullah Deputy Commissioner Dr Yasir Bazai said, adding that the injured were shifted to Quetta via helicopters.

Maulana Abdul Wasey, who was MNA from Balochistan in the last National Assembly, was not in the office when the blast took place. He directed the JUI-F local leaders and workers to leave the party and election offices immediately and continue election work from some other places without holding big gatherings.

JUI-F attacked

In another incident targeting the JUI-F, former senator Hafiz Hamdullah survived along with his other party leaders and workers. His convoy was attacked between Qila Abdullah and Mazaiadha area in the evening.

“Attackers, who were hiding in the Toorpul area, used automatic weapons to target the JUI-F convoy when it reached the area,” officials said. Everyone remained unhurt and the attackers escaped following the retaliatory fire by the JUI-F leader’s guards.

The ECP took notice of the blasts and sought reports from the Balochistan chief secretary and the police chief in this regard.

In other parts of the province, at least five places, including polling stations and the house of an election candidate, were attacked with hand grenades and rockets in different areas of Balochistan on Wednesday.

Officials said armed men attacked the house of election candidate Kifayatullah Baloch in Panjgur. They lobbed a grenade and opened fire on the house.

In Kohlu, rockets were fired in Killi Sher Jan at a school that was turned into a polling station. The building was slightly damaged as the rockets landed and exploded in the open place. A school in Shahi Bagh, being used as a polling station, also came under a grenade attack in Mastung.

An explosion was also reported in the Surab area of Kalat district. Another polling station was targeted in the Khand area of Khuzdar.

Following the violence, caretaker Chief Minister Mir Ali Mardan Domki sought a report from the home ministry. CM Domki said the attacks were an “attempt to sabotage the process of peaceful elections” and asserted that all resources were being put to use to “provide complete protection to the public”.

The caretaker government of Balochistan has declared three days of mourning to pay tribute to the martyrs.

Trajectory of electoral process

On the eve of the elections, concerns loom large over the trajectory of Pakistan’s electoral process, as highlighted by reports from influential global outfits and figures. Amnesty International issued an unequivocal statement expressing profound concern about the “lethal and targeted” violence unfolding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

Pointing to the tragic incident in Balochistan’s Pishin and Qila Saifullah, Amnesty Inter­national expressed concerns over a spectrum of issues, including “pre-election violence, selective bans on protests, harassment, arbitrary arrests, media restrictions, internet disruptions, and trials of political opponents lacking due process.”

Patricia Gossman, Associate Asia Director for Human Rights Watch (HRW), expressed deep-seated concerns about the persistent erosion of democratic institutions and the suppression of political opposition. Ms Gossman highlighted the crackdown on opposition parties, particularly the PTI. It stated that “the political opposition has been marginalised, critics and the media muzzled, and space for civil society has further shrunk”.

Anwar Iqbal in Washington also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2024