New Delhi: A newly enacted law in Pakistan’s Balochistan province has triggered a storm of criticism from legal experts, human rights groups, and civil society organisations, who warn it could entrench a culture of repression and state overreach in the troubled region.
The Counter-Terrorism (Balochistan Amendment) Act 2025, passed by the Balochistan assembly on June 4, grants sweeping powers to Pakistan’s military and intelligence agencies — including the Army and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) — allowing them to detain individuals for up to 90 days without charge, solely on the basis of suspicion.
Under the law, Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) made up of police and intelligence personnel are authorised to issue detention orders, conduct ideological profiling, and search homes and properties — all without prior judicial approval. Military officials will now also be part of civilian oversight panels, a move widely seen as the militarisation of civilian governance.
Violates Article 10 of Pakistan’s Constitution
Rights watchdogs, including Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch, have strongly condemned the law. They argue it violates Article 10 of Pakistan’s Constitution, which guarantees protection from arbitrary detention, and breaches Pakistan’s commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
“This law effectively turns Balochistan into a legalised detention zone,” said the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) in a sharply worded statement. “It legitimises the enforced disappearances and extra-judicial practices already rampant in the province.”
Enforced disappearances have long haunted Balochistan, with countless families still searching for missing relatives — some gone without a trace for decades, allegedly at the hands of state forces. Activists say the new law codifies these shadow practices into formal policy.
Mass surveillance and ideological targeting
Critics also warn that the legislation dangerously blurs the line between civilian law enforcement and military operations, enabling mass surveillance and ideological targeting, particularly of the ethnic Baloch population.
“This is collective punishment,” BYC added, comparing the law to “tactics used in Nazi Germany and in China’s Xinjiang region”, where Uyghur Muslims face mass internment.
In response to the backlash, a provincial government spokesperson defended the law, stating it targets only those “involved in anti-state activities” and that “law-abiding citizens have nothing to fear”. However, rights defenders argue that such vague language can be used to justify arbitrary arrests and suppress dissent.
