Mr. Bugti, president of the Baloch Republican Party and the grandson of Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti who was killed in an encounter with the Pakistani Army 10 years ago, also said the Baloch people “do not want to live with Pakistan anymore”, as he demanded a referendum of Baloch people under the supervision of the United Nations.
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After his remarks, many Baloch leaders also extended their support to him.
This is the second time that the Baloch people have raised the Tricolour in their protests against Pakistan. But India denied the charge.
A senior foreign ministry official in Islamabad said Modi had “crossed the red line”. “It gives them ammunition”, said Dr Daniel Markey, a South Asia expert at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. Some of the protesters carried Indian Tricolour as could be seen in pictures.
However, India has continued to maintain its tough stand on the matter saying that is willing to proceed with dialogue on ending cross-border terrorism and exemplifying Pakistan as the “prime perpetrator of terrorism” in the region.
On its part, adviser to the Prime Minister on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz, while briefing the ambassadors of the P-5 and European Union countries in Islamabad about the situation in the valley, “regretted” India’s virtual rejection of its proposal for talks on Kashmir.
Husain Haqqani, former Ambassador of Pakistan to the U.S and now Director for South and Central Asia at Hudson Institute, said: “It’s tragic that those who advocate talks with globally recognised terrorists such as the Taliban have an intransigent position when it comes to engagement with the leaders and people of Balochistan”.
The reference to China reflects Indian unease at Beijing´s backing of a $46 billion trade corridor running through land in northeast Pakistan that New Delhi claims, onward through Balochistan to the port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea coast.
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Asked about absence of the Finance Minister from the ongoing SAARC meet, indicating the growing strain in relationship, Swarup said, “Providing support, safe havens and sanctuary to terrorists and making the distinction between good terrorist and bad terrorist has posed enormous risk to peace and stability to our region”. He said New Delhi had rejected his application for Indian asylum in 2007.
