DERA BUGTI, March 26: Three people were killed in an exchange of fire between security forces and militants at the Peshbogi area here on Sunday. The incident coincided with the return of Rahija tribesmen of Dera Bugti, opponents of Nawab Akbar Bugti, to their hometown after nine years of refuge in Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan.

A convoy of over 100 vehicles carrying about 1,500 Rahijas led by Mir Hamadan Bugti, escorted by army and paramilitary troops with helicopters hovering above, entered the Dera Bugti town from Deramore at 3pm.

Security personnel stood along the road from Sui to Dera Bugti as the Rahija tribesmen, displaced in 1997, passed by. The men, women and children appeared delighted at returning to their homes.

Residents of Sui and Dera Bugti cheered the convoy, but there was little other activity in the towns as shops were closed and there was no other traffic. A majority of the residents of Dera Bugti have already moved to other places.

Colonel Furqan, commander of the Bambore Rifles, a wing of the Frontier Corps, told reporters that two militants and a militiaman were killed in a rocket attack by armed men and the ensuing exchange of fire with security forces.

He said three outlaws, one of them injured, were arrested and added that a thorough search had been carried out in the area to ensure safety of the returning tribesmen.

AFP quoted an unidentified security official as saying the shootout began when tribesmen attacked security forces guarding a route to be used by returning tribesmen near Sui town. “Two attackers and a soldier were killed in the shootout.”

District Coordination Officer Abdul Samad Lasi claimed that 10 per cent residents of the Dera Bugti town had returned and many more would be coming back soon. He said the government would help them get rehabilitated to lead a peaceful life.

Talking to reporters, Mir Hamadan Rahija said they had been first expelled in 1993 but were later allowed to return. However, he added, they were again forced out of their homes in 1997 owing to pressure from Jamhoori Watan Party leader Nawab Bugti.

About differences with the JWP leader, he said Nawab Bugti was his cousin and he had no enmity with him. However, he pointed out, “we have different political outlooks pertaining to problems of Dera Bugti”.

Mir Hamadan said when he was chairman of the district union, several projects had been launched to build schools and health facilities in the town and added that the development activity had upset Nawab Bugti.

He alleged that Nawab Bugti did not believe in democracy and coexistence which led to their expulsion from the area. He thanked the government for helping them return to their homes.

Agencies add: Elsewhere in Balochistan, two home-made bombs exploded outside the house of Chief Minister Jam Mohammed Yousuf and militants blew up a gas pipeline.

The bombs exploded near the residence of the chief minister in Lasbela, a government spokesman said.