QUETTA:
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is willing to sit across the table with “those who have been misled… who have been led astray” in Balochistan as he promised “social and economic justice” to the people of the impoverished province which has been caught up in a spiral of deadly violence since 2006.
“We must strive to win back the people who were misled [by terrorists] to the wrong track. If there are any grievances, they should be resolved through dialogue in the spirit of brotherhood,” he said while referring to chronic grievances in the dirt-poor province which have been exploited by Baloch terrorist groups to promote their violent narrative.
The prime minister was addressing a grand jirga in Quetta on Saturday which brought together tribal elders, lawmakers, and key stakeholders for consultations aimed at resolving long-standing issues, particularly those related to security and development. Field Marshal Chief of Army Staff Syed Asim Munir, Baochistan’s Acting Governor Abdul Khaliq Achakzai, Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti and high ranking military and civil officials were also in attendance.
کوئٹہ: وزیرِ اعظم محمد شہباز شریف کا بلوچستان گرینڈ جرگہ سے خطاب! https://t.co/zgHqV70bmh
— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) May 31, 2025
Expressing gratitude for the warm welcome he received at the jirga, the prime minister described Balochistan as “a beautiful province of brave people and the heart of Pakistan.”
There has been an uptick in terrorist violence in the province which civil and military officials have blamed on India. “The bloodthirsty terrorists, who are against the progress prosperity of Pakistan, are carrying out heinous acts of terrorism at the behest of foreign elements,” Premier Shehbaz said while referring to India.
“They must be stopped. We all must defeat their nefarious designs. If there are shortcomings in our response, these could be addressed with your guidance,” he told the jirga participants.
“All provinces are like brothers and will equally share resources of the country,” PM Shehbaz said, adding that the federal government was spending Rs70 billion on a solarisation project in Balochistan.
Similarly, Rs150 billion would be diverted for building N25 highway, which is commonly referred to as the “bloody highway” due to its precarious condition. Money for these projects would be acquired from the amount which the government was collecting after the drop in the prices of petroleum products in the international market.
The prime minister said that the government would allocate Rs1,000 billion for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) this year and 25 per cent, or Rs250 billion, from the fund would be for projects in Balochistan. He said federal funds were the right of people of Balochistan and every penny would be spent transparently on the progress and prosperity of the province.
He recalled that during his tenure as the chief minister of Punjab, he had allocated 10 per cent quota for students of Balochistan in different schemes of Punjab, including laptop schemes and scholarships in foreign and provincial educational institutions. In the past, Rs2 billion was allocated for a cardiac hospital in Balochistan, he added.
The prime minister also recalled that Punjab had agreed to give part of its share from the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award to Balochistan in view of its development needs as the province is the largest in terms of area. “In today’s value, the funds diverted to Balochistan amount to Rs160 billion,” he explained.
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The NFC award was signed in Lahore in 2010 after three days of discussions among the national leadership, including President Asif Ali Zardari, then prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Nawaz Sharif, he added.
He said that during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure as prime minister a lot of development projects were undertaken in Balochistan and President Zardari had initiated Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package.
Talking about the recent conflict with India, Premier Shehbaz said that on the night between May 6 and 7 and May 10 India attacked Pakistan but with the grace of Allah, the armed forces bravely defeated the enemy, who will remember its defeat forever. He thanked people of Pakistan for showing unity and standing shoulder to shoulder with Pakistan Army during the conflict.
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“As the prime minister I was witness to all the events of the short duration war,” he said, adding that “as a brave and sagacious leader Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir led Pakistan armed forces to a victory against India and made the nation proud.”
He said that the triumph over India was akin to avenging the events of 1971. “Now the enemy is scared and Pakistan’s friendly countries are more confident after Pakistan’s military victory over India,” he claimed.
