Awaran women arrested last month have returned home, says BNP-M leader

Four women who were reported to have been arrested in Awaran last month have been released, confirmed Balochistan lawmaker Sanaullah Baloch on Monday.

In a tweet on Monday, Baloch, a member of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), said: "BNP is the guardian of Balochistan's honour. Our respectable mothers of Awaran have been released and returned home."

The development comes days after BNP-M leaders highlighted the incident before the media. On November 30, Levies and police officials announced arrest of the women and accused them of carrying arms and explosives for Baloch separatist groups in Awaran.

BNP-M leaders termed the arrests as a direct attack on the traditions of Baloch people and demanded the formation of a high-level committee to investigate the matter. At a press conference, BNP-M acting president Abdul Wali Kakar had stated that the four Baloch women were 'picked up' from their homes without showing any warrants and put behind bars.

A day after the incident, they were presented before media personnel in the presence of Levies and police personnel, Kakar had said. Some weapons were also shown to the media and it was claimed that they belonged to the arrested women, he added.

On December 5, BNP-M chief Akhtar Mengal staged a protest in front of the National Assembly speaker's dais and threatened to quit the alliance with the government if the women did not return. Following Mengal's protest, Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri directed Interior Minister retired Brig Ijaz Ahmad Shah to take notice of the matter.

A day later, Shah met Mengal and other BNP-M leaders in Suri's chamber and assured them of the government's "complete cooperation" in the matter.