QUETTA, Aug 19: Strikes were observed on Sunday in some suburban areas of Quetta and some parts of the Awaran district on separate calls given by the Pakhtunkhwa National Democratic Alliance, the Balochistan National Party (Mengal) and the Baloch Students Organisation.
The PNDA and the BNP-Mengal issued statements criticising police for resorting to baton-charge and tear-gas shelling and arresting five activists in Kuchlak, a suburb of Quetta.
The statements claimed that the arrests were aimed at sabotaging the strike against increasing cases of theft in the area.
Police said five people were taken into custody for forcing shopkeepers to close their shops and for creating law and order problem.
The statements said that the police failure to arrest criminals involved in the theft and robbery cases forced the people of the town to go on strike.
The parties thanked traders for observing the strike and demanded of the government to release all arrested people.
The Baloch Student Organisation, in a statement issued here on Sunday, claimed that the shutter-down strike was observed in some parts of Awaran to protest against the failure of the government to release all missing people, including political activists, allegedly detained by intelligence agencies.
The statement said the Baloch would continue their struggle against what it called the state excesses, adding that the BSO would continue its protest till the recovery of all missing people.
