DERA GHAZI KHAN: In a pleasantly surprising turn of events following the tragic incident near Loralai, Balochistan, one of the nine individuals initially declared dead has been confirmed to be alive.

The individual, identified as Irfan from Dera Ghazi Khan, was mistakenly presumed dead due to a mix-up in the identification of bodies.

Commandant Border Military Police Dera Ghazi Khan Asad Chandia (who had supervised transportation of bodies from Balochistan border to their native areas in Punjab) told that Irfan was among the 12 passengers who were forcibly offloaded from the bus by armed assailants. However, Irfan managed to escape execution.

The commandant said following his escape, Irfan did not return to the passenger coach but instead took an alternative vehicle to reach his native village, Wasti Buzdar, tehsil Taunsa Sharif. At present he is in a state of shock according to his family, Chandia said.

One Kashif, who is an employee of 1122 and hails from the same village, told Dawn that Irfan successfully escaped execution by hiding his mobile phone and identity card.

Due to his absence from the passenger list during the recovery process, authorities mistakenly identified the body of another victim, Sheikh Majid, as that of Irfan.

The confusion was cleared when local administration contacted Irfan Buzdar’s family to identify the body and they confirmed that Irfan had returned home safely but was not ready to give detail of his ordeal.

This revelation raises questions about the accuracy of initial reports and identification processes.

The Loralai attack, allegedly carried out by militants linked to the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), resulted in the deaths of nine passengers. The incident has drawn widespread condemnation and renewed concerns over passenger safety in the region.

Talking to Dawn, DGK Deputy Commissioner Usman Khalid said the district administration does not allow public transport to enter Balochistan at night in order to prevent any untoward incidents. However, the recent fatal attack, which occurred in broad daylight, has raised serious concerns about the safety of commuters who prefer to travel during the day to avoid such threats.

In December 2023, Dera Ghazi Khan had received bodies of six barbers from Waziristan and three from Balochistan in January 2024.

Heirs of six barbers had also received compensation from government but the families of three truckers Ahmed Rasheed Zuhrani (23), two brothers Syed Ali Haider (16) and Syed Kumail Haider (25) could not get financial aid despite the fact that the DGK district government had officially requested and wrote to the provincial government for the compensation.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2025