Feudal nomadic Baloch society is still struggling to fully integrate itself in political structure of Pakistani state. Being a frontier region for British India, administration of Balochistan was mostly franchised to tribal sardars, allowing central government to direct resources to other priority needs. After independence, perpetual political instability consumed Pakistan's rulers in political matters in country's heartland. As a result, central government continued with pre-partition policy of managing Balochistan through sardars who were kept under control through regular payouts and quasi suzerainty in their fiefdoms. Whenever any sardar attempted to step out of state's fold, the state re-asserted its authority by employing force while simultaneously playing feudals against each other.

While sardars enjoyed extraordinary autonomy in their areas of influence, had final say in administrative matters and received regular payouts from government in name of royalties, bogey of exploitation was kept alive as leverage against state. And the result has been numerous area specific insurgencies since independence.

However, the ongoing militancy in the province is unique in character, as its control has moved from traditional sardars to middle class militant leaders with no feudal or political background. This phenomenon is a consequence of state's refusal to negotiate with recalcitrant sardars as practiced in past, and decision to assert its authority permanently like in other settled regions of the country. Displacement of feudal authority led to vacuum which was filled by new leadership, outside of traditional feudal fold. Whatever their initial motivations, external patronisation led this group to choose militancy instead of adopting a coherent political strategy to attain their........

© The Express Tribune