The recent attacks in Balochistan are not isolated acts of violence, nor are they spontaneous security breakdowns triggered by momentary unrest. They are the latest expressions of a deep, unresolved political conflict that has simmered for decades between the province and the Pakistani state. Since Pakistan’s inception, Balochistan has witnessed repeated cycles of insurgency—each rooted in unmet political commitments, contested autonomy, and perceived denial of constitutional rights. Militant groups operating in the region are now increasingly framing their actions as leverage for political concessions, economic justice, and structural reforms, signalling a shift from purely armed resistance to an explicitly political narrative. While violence against civilians and the state remains indefensible and must be condemned without qualification, reducing these events to a mere law-and-order problem ignores the deeper political fractures that continue to define Balochistan as Pakistan’s most sensitive and volatile fault line.

Despite being endowed with vast natural resources—natural gas, copper, gold, coal, fisheries, and a strategically vital coastline—Balochistan remains Pakistan’s most underdeveloped province in terms of human development. The province has powered industries and urban centres across the country for decades, yet many of its own districts remain deprived of reliable electricity, clean drinking water, quality education, and basic healthcare. Chronic unemployment, particularly among educated youth, has produced a generation that feels excluded from opportunity, decision-making, and national ownership. For many Baloch citizens, the state appears visible during resource extraction, security operations, or mega-project announcements—but largely absent when it comes to service delivery, economic uplift, and political empowerment. This persistent gap between contribution and compensation has hardened perceptions of exploitation and deepened alienation.

Successive governments have largely treated Balochistan as a security challenge rather than a political question. Each major incident is followed by intensified security operations, expanded troop deployments, and tighter administrative controls. While the state has an undeniable responsibility to maintain law and order, decades of experience demonstrate that coercion without political engagement has failed to deliver sustainable peace.

Instead, it has reinforced a narrative of control rather than inclusion, weakened trust in state institutions, and pushed political grievances further outside constitutional and democratic channels.

What distinguishes the current phase of unrest is the clarity and consistency of the militants’ narrative.

Their discourse has moved beyond vague slogans to specific demands for greater provincial autonomy, transparent resource management, fair revenue sharing, meaningful political representation, and economic inclusion. This evolution exposes a central reality: Balochistan’s conflict is not simply about militancy—it is about governance failure, federal imbalance, and the systematic marginalisation of a province within Pakistan’s political economy.

Large-scale initiatives such as CPEC, Gwadar Port, and mineral development projects are frequently promoted as symbols of progress and national integration. Yet for many local communities, these ventures have translated into land dispossession, environmental degradation, demographic anxiety, and exclusion from decision-making. Development imposed without consultation is perceived not as opportunity but as intrusion. Infrastructure without local employment breeds resentment rather than growth. Investment without political participation transforms national ambition into local grievance, further deepening the fault line.

Ironically, Pakistan’s constitution already provides pathways for resolution. The 18th Amendment, the National Finance Commission Award, and the framework for elected local governments are designed to guarantee provincial autonomy and equitable resource distribution. The crisis lies not in constitutional intent but in selective, uneven, and reluctant implementation. Balochistan remains underrepresented in federal decision-making, underfunded in human development, and over-centralised in administrative control—conditions that continuously undermine confidence in the federation.

It must be stated without ambiguity: no political grievance legitimises violence. Attacks on civilians, labourers, and security personnel are criminal acts that deserve unequivocal condemnation and legal accountability. However, condemnation alone cannot substitute for policy. A state that relies solely on force while avoiding political introspection risks perpetuating a conflict it claims to manage. Security measures may suppress symptoms temporarily, but they cannot heal a political rupture.

Peace in Balochistan will not be achieved through the barrel of a gun, nor through silence, denial, or cosmetic development packages. It will only emerge when the state demonstrates the political courage to listen, reform, and correct decades of structural injustice. This requires a decisive shift from reactive security responses to proactive political reconciliation—anchored in constitutional rights, transparent governance, credible accountability, and genuine economic inclusion. The youth of Balochistan must see a future in ballots rather than bullets, in classrooms rather than camps, and in dignified employment rather than alienation. If Pakistan chooses dialogue over dismissal, justice over coercion, and partnership over control, Balochistan can transform from a perpetual fault line into a foundation of federal strength. The choice is stark and the moment critical: address the political and economic roots of alienation now, or continue paying the escalating price of instability that weakens the federation, damages Pakistan’s global standing, and undermines the promise of a peaceful, united, and democratic future.

Dr Alamdar Hussain Malik
Advisor, Veterinary Sciences
University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Swat
Former Financial Adviser,Finance Division
Government of Pakistan