The Balochistan government has released women and children related to leaders of the banned Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) and Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) from the custody of the Frontier Corps, Balochistan Home Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti said on Friday.

Three women and four children ─ family members of BLF's chief Allah Nazar Baloch and commander of BLA Aslam Achou ─ were arrested from the Pak-Afghan border at Chaman, Bugti said while addressing a press conference in Quetta.

He added that the detainees were freed on the orders of the provincial chief minister, Nawab Sanaullah Zehri, and sent to Karachi.

"We are not ones to target women and children," Bugti said. "We released them in accordance with our tribal customs."

Earlier, Zehri had met with the women and presented them with Balochi shawls.

BLF's chief Allah Nazar was rumoured to have been killed in 2015. However, the banned outfit had denied the claims by releasing a video of him. Last year, Zehri had announced head money for 99 militants, including Allah Nazar since his death had not been confirmed.

In March 2016, the Balochistan government "confirmed" that BLA commander Aslam Achou, along with seven other militants, had been killed in a gunbattle with security forces in Sibi.