Pakistan: Balochistan activist slams court over rearrest of PTM chief Manzoor Pashteen

Mahrang Baloch, a Baloch activist, called the court’s lack of response over the remand of Manzoor Pashteen, the leader of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a “joke with the constitution and the law” on Friday. She referred to it as the “height of fascism” and said that Pashteen was detained in front of the prison despite the High Court’s directive for his release. “After the release of PTM leader Manzoor Pashteen, the abduction-like arrest in front of the jail is the height of fascism. For those who say that why are you disappointed with the courts, it is a request to them that when the courts fail to provide justice to the people, then disappointment with the courts is a thousand sins better. The order to release Manzoor Pashteen came from the High Court, but to trample the court order and re-arrest it and the courts are silent on it is a joke with the constitution and the law,” Mahrang Baloch stated in a post shared on social media platform X. After being granted post-arrest bail on Tuesday, PTM chief Manzoor Pashteen was re-arrested and taken to an undisclosed location. Manzoor Pashteen vented his annoyance on social media, claiming that jail regulations were rigged, court rulings were disregarded, and the idea of a regular state only existed in theory. He emphasised that Pakistan is still under “brutal colonial rule”. “Despite the release orders of #ManzoorPashteen he was again arrested by deep state & taken away to undisclosed location. Court orders are not accepted, jail rules are twisted & normal state exists only on papers. Brutal colonial rule continue in Pakistan. #WhereIsManzoorPashteen,” Pashteen said in a statement on X. Manzoor Pashteen’s post-arrest release was granted by an Islamabad sessions court on Tuesday in relation to a complaint that was filed at the Tarnol police station, according to The Express Tribune of Pakistan. Following the conclusion of the judicial remand, the Islamabad police brought the PTM president before the court of senior civil judge Shabbir Bhatti. Following the hearing of the arguments, the court granted Pashteen’s post-arrest release. In order to secure the bail, the court required him to provide a 5,000 Pakistani Rupee (PKR) surety bond. Details indicate that Pashteen was detained for violating an order preventing his entry into Balochistan. The PTM chief was allegedly apprehended by the police in Balochistan following gunfire directed at an officer’s vehicle. But the PTM claimed that the police had fired shots at the vehicle in which Pashteen was traveling. PTM was established in 2014 by Manzoor Pashteen, who is an advocate for the rights of Pashtuns impacted by Pakistan’s conflict with the Taliban and its local wing, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The Baloch people have also been victims of similar crimes committed by the security services, and the PTM has been speaking out for them. Earlier in December, Manzoor Pashteen, the chairman of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), was detained. This sparked protests by Pashtuns in Pakistan. Protesters protested over the arrest of a human rights activist and Pashtun leader by blocking roads in several regions of the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. (With agency inputs)