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Updated: Jun 15, 2020 07:31 IST

Irrespective of being a province within the territory of Pakistan, people of Balochistan on Thursday expressed their solidarity with Indians on the occasion of the country’s 73rd Independence Day and said they need India’s support to free their land from the domination of Pakistan and its military establishment.

“I want to wish my Indian brothers and sisters a very happy Independence Day. The success they have made in the last 70 years makes Indians proud. Today, Indians are proud all around the world. We Balochs are thankful for their solidarity and help. We want them to raise their voice for a free Balochistan. We need their support. Thank you and Jai Hind,” said Baloch activist, Atta Baloch.

Balochistan, the most volatile province in the southwestern borders of Pakistan has been struggling since 1948 against Pakistani occupation. The Baloch people say that they got independence from the British on August 11, 1947.

The province, rich in natural gas fields, has also accused China of plundering their economic wealth especially after the construction of modern transportation networks, numerous energy projects, and special economic zones under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.

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Another Baloch activist, Ashraf Sherjan, also after wishing India on this occasion urged the latter to “raise Balochistan officially in all forms, including the United Nations.”

“I wish a very happy Independence Day to all my Indian brothers and sisters. We appeal to India to raise Balochistan officially in all forms, including the United Nations. The people of Balochistan are suffering genocide at the hands of Pakistan and its military establishment,” Sherjan said.

“Balochistan is bleeding,” he added.

The activist further requested India to be “please be the voice of the voiceless” and concluded his remarks by calling out loud in Hindi, “Bharat mata ki jai.”

On August 14, Pakistan observed its Independence Day as ‘Kashmir Solidarity Day’, in a protest against India’s decision to abrogate Article 370 that accorded Jammu and Kashmir with special status and passing a bill, which bifurcated the region into two Union Territories.

However, the cash-strapped nation was left red-faced after #BalochistanSolidarityDay and #14AugustBlackDay started trending on Twitter with more than 100,000 tweets and 54,000 tweets, respectively.

At a time when Islamabad has been urging the UN Security Council to take action over Kashmiris in the wake of changing status of Jammu and Kashmir, it is worth mentioning that the human rights violations in Balochistan, the most volatile province in Pakistan, have already drawn concerns of the international community and other human rights watchdogs.

(The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text, only the headline has been changed.)