QUETTA: Commission on enforced disappearances has hitherto received 209 cases of missing Baloch political workers from Balochistan, Pakistan's least developed and insurgency-hit province.

A well-placed source in Balochistan home and tribal affairs department told Dawn.com on Wednesday that 61 missing persons have been recovered and 24 mutilated dead bodies found in different parts of the troubled province up till now.

He said 44 cases of missing persons were disposed off following lack of required documents. Apart from this, 144 cases of missing persons were under trial before Supreme Court of Pakistan.

“The chief minister has strictly directed the concerned quarters to expedite the cases of missing persons,” the official said.

He said that all deputy commissioners were instructed to inform the home department about the missing persons' cases on priority basis. Chief Minister Balochistan Dr Abdul Malik Baloch has already announced that recovery of missing persons was top priority of his government.

“Without the recovery of missing persons, situation in the province cannot be improved,” said the chief minister.

Meanwhile, Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) chairman Nasrullah Baloch said that the officials were deliberately showing less number of missing persons. He claimed that so far his organisation has received 2,781 cases of missing persons from different parts of Balochistan.

The officials, however, contradict the VBMP claims and say that the number of missing persons was less.

The VBMP has also been protesting for the recovery of missing persons. Currently, its long march led by Mama Qadeer Baloch is underway from Karachi to Islamabad to press the authorities to ensure the recovery of Baloch missing political workers.

These statistics on the part of home and tribal affairs department have surfaced after Chief Minister Baloch’s announcement of convening a multiparty conference to find political solutions of the issues facing the province.