QUETTA: Religious scholars on Wednesday declared that guns were not the solution to any problem, and stressed that all stakeholders must sit together and resolve Balochistan’s issues through dialogue.
Speaking at a joint press conference following a seminar on ‘Restoring Peace in Balochistan and Confidence-Building, the Institutional Responsibilities of Ulema and Mashaykh’, the scholars — including Maulana Dr Ata ur Rehman, Allama Muhammad Juma Asadi, Maulana Anwar-ul-Haq Haqqani, and Qari Abdul Rehman Noorzai — emphasised that lasting solutions lie in justice, mediation, and reconciliation rather than the use of force.
The clerics urged the government to conduct transparent investigations into all missing persons’ cases. They said that anyone found guilty should be tried in open courts, while innocent individuals must be released immediately.
Warning that the province now stands at a crossroads, the scholars noted one path leads toward complete separation and the other toward a constitutional struggle for basic rights. They traced the current cycle of violence, the consequences of which are still being felt today, to the 2006 killing of Nawab Akbar Bugti, a former federal minister, Balochistan chief minister and governor.
The scholars warned that hostile elements exploit local grievances and demanded that citizens be treated as partners of the state rather than suspects.
To reduce frustration and anxiety among the youth, they demanded that locals be given jobs and a meaningful stake in Gwadar, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and mining projects.
They also called for a major portion of revenue generated from provincial resources to be allocated to local development.
The clerics blamed foreign interference for worsening the situation, alleging that external forces sought to create divisions, hatred and mistrust to prevent unity among Muslim countries and destabilise Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran.
Noting that the Quran declares peacemaking between disputing parties a religious duty, the scholars said the seminar proposed several specific measures to restore stability.
These include holding transparent elections in the province; granting locals their rightful share in natural resources; expanding education, specifically technical and vocational training and employment opportunities; regulating border trade routes and eliminating drug and trawler mafias; empowering the Human Rights Commission; establishing a reconciliation council comprising ulema and respected community figures.
They further called for improved intelligence systems with community participation and introduced the idea of special quotas for Balochistan in public and private sectors.
The scholars reaffirmed that Balochistan’s leading ulema and mashaykh stand ready to shoulder any responsibility assigned to them for restoring peace and stability in the province.
Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2026
