After a prolonged period of relative calm in the country, terror has revisited the country’s volatile region as a blast in Balochistan’s Kharan district has injured at least 13 people. The latest tragedy shows that the scourge of terrorism has not ended yet and there is no single formula that can be applied to completely eliminate the malaise once and for all. Every time evil mongers let loose hell on innocent citizens, the atmosphere becomes somber and the list of aggrieved families becomes longer. The people of Balochistan are a constant target of such atrocities. Innocent citizens become the victims of merciless terrorists.
Though successive military operations have caused a considerable reduction in terrorist activities and controlled militancy to some extent, yet it does not mean that all terrorists have been wiped out and militancy has been completely eliminated. Rather, they have started carrying out scattered attacks. The gargantuan claim of complete elimination of terrorism made by the civilian and military leadership leads one to contemplate what the source of this certitude might be. Undoubtedly, the past years have brought tremendous successes in the struggle to stamp down terrorism in the country. There is also a need to acknowledge the cases relating to human suffering at the hands of militants who want to impose their misplaced agendas in the volatile regions. Those militants who have been defeated in the battlefield are now attacking soft fronts along with making casual strikes whenever they find an opportunity. The nature of the enemy is such that if at any point we lure ourselves into a false sense security we risk losing the ground that has been arduously gained. What is more sagacious is to ensure that the people fully comprehend that true elimination is a long, gradual and gruelling process and requires collective effort, on a state-level as well as an individual level, whether it is to battle militants in the field or hate speech in daily discourse, these are deep-rooted issues, which leave no room for laxity or misplaced triumph. We need to stay the course to continue the fight against terror that has claimed so many lives and still haunting many minds.
