How triple murders in Pakistan's Balochistan have brought a minister’s ‘private prisons’ to light

A gruesome murder of three people in Balochistan’s Barkhan district has sent shockwaves across Pakistan. Balochistan minister for communication and works Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran has been arrested after three bullet-riddled bodies – one female and two male – were found in sacks in a well near his residence on Monday night (20 February), reported Dawn. Confirming Khetran’s arrest earlier today (23 February), Abdul Khaliq Sheikh, Inspector General of Balochistan, said a special investigation team comprising senior police officers has started interrogation of the minister. Khetran has denied the charges and called it a “conspiracy to damage my political reputation”, according to Geo TV. What is known about the Barkhan killings and what has the Pakistan minister been accused of? We explain. The Barkhan tragedy According to the Dawn report, the police surgeon who conducted the postmortem examination said the female body said it was of a 17 to 18-year-old girl, who was “raped and shot in the head thrice”. The postmortem report also found that the face and neck of the girl were burnt with acid to conceal her identity. It was believed initially that the female body belonged to a 40-year-old woman named Granaz, the wife of Khan Muhammad Marri. The police said earlier that the hands and feet of the three bodies were tied with ropes, Dawn reported. Marri, who was reportedly a servant of Khetran, said that the other two bodies were of his sons – 22-year-old Muhammad Anwar and 15-year-old Abdul Qadir. Dr Ayesha Faiz, the police surgeon, said the boys were also tortured before being killed, as per Geo TV. ALSO READ: No salaries, ban on luxury cars and 5-star hotels: Pakistan’s austerity measures for politicians who looted the nation Charges against the Baloch minister

According to Marri, his wife and other family members were being kept in Khetran’s “private jail” in Haji Kot area of Barkhan for years, Geo TV reported.

While he had fled one of the minister’s “three private jails”, Marri said his five other children, including a 13-year-old daughter, were still held there. Marri alleged his family was imprisoned in Khetran’s private jail in 2019 after he could not testify in a case between the Baloch provincial minister and his son, Sardar Inam Khetran, as per The Independent. After Marri’s allegations that spurred protest across Balochistan, Levies Force said it has “recovered” his wife and five children from different areas including Kohlu, Dakki, Barkhan and Dera Bugti, Geo TV reported.

A new twist in the #Barkhan case. Levies Force claims they have recovered abducted woman, Garan Naz, her four sons, and a daughter that were allegedly in the custody of provincial Minister Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran. Her husband has not confirmed their recovery yet. pic.twitter.com/mRputzWq3i

— Amjad Ali (@amjadalihere) February 23, 2023

The officials also said they thwarted an attempt to shift the two abducted boys to Pakistan’s Punjab. On Tuesday night, the police had raided the residences of Khetran in Quetta and Barkhan. ALSO READ: Protests against arrest of Mahal Baloch rock Balochistan, Karachi What is the minister saying? Denying involvement in the murders, Khetran said he is a “peaceful and law-abiding person”. He called the allegations a “sinister attempt” to deny him the “right of regional politics”, Geo TV reported. “Had there been a jail, it would have been discovered,” he said earlier. “However, if anyone is still in doubt, they can check my house.”

However, as per media reports, this is not the first time Khetran has been accused of holding people in his “private prison”.

In 2014, Khetran was arrested after police conducted a raid on his private dungeon and recovered seven people including two women, and three children, as per The Independent report. Outrage in Pakistan Sit-in protests are being staged by Marri tribesmen and family members of the Barkhan victims in Quetta, who have demanded action against Khetran. The demonstrators who were protesting with the three bodies had called for lodging a case against Khetran and the recovery of the five missing people.

Khan Muhammad Marri has suffered a horrific tragedy at the hands of state-backed Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran. We stand in solidarity with KM Marri and Family as they protest in the redzone of Quetta, #Balochistan, refusing to bury their loved ones until their demands are met. pic.twitter.com/vqB9Pz2tvJ

— Paank (@paank_bnm) February 21, 2023

Impact Shorts

More Shorts

‘The cries of this widow will echo’: In first public remarks, Erika Kirk warns Charlie’s killers they’ve ‘unleashed a fire’

Trump urges Nato to back sanctions on Russia, calls for 50–100% tariffs on China

As per Dawn, the protesters have also said they would not stop the demonstrations or bury the bodies until Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif visits them. Politicians have also joined the outcry that flooded social media after the incident came to light. Condemning the killings, former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan tweeted, “Strongly condemn illegal incarceration, physical abuse & killing of a poor Baloch woman & her children in Barkhan, Balochistan in private jail of Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran, a prov minister. Immediate action must be taken against this law of the jungle".

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said it was “horrified by the discovery of three bullet-ridden bodies”. The commission said in a tweet that the “serious allegations must be investigated promptly”. Parliamentary secretary for climate change MNA Naz Baloch said the Barkhan murders were “highly condemnable”. She also expressed regret, saying the Balochistan province was “neglected” by all the previous governments. “Public representatives are a symbol of hope and relief for the constituents as they expect justice from them. This incident has revealed tragic news from Balochistan. If people are not safe from their representatives then who else will safeguard them?" she was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.