A key Baloch activist has called for a "shutter-down strike across Pakistan on January 3 against alleged rights abuses and "genocide after caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar slammed week-long protests in Islamabad as support for "terrorists and blamed India’s intelligence agency RAW for fomenting trouble in the restive region. The strike call was issued on Tuesday by Mahrang Baloch, who has been leading the Islamabad stir by hundreds, mostly women, against alleged "enforced disappearances and "genocide of innocent Baloch people at the hands of Pakistan’s security agencies.

PM Kakar's comments during a press conference in Lahore, where he spent more than 15 minutes talking about issues plaguing Balochistan, have been widely condemned as "irresponsible and provocative. The premier's remarks suggested that those protesting in Islamabad were the "relatives of those fighting against the state in Balochistan. He also insisted that the militants were fighting against the state, aided by India, and suggested that their protests were serving the interests of terrorists.

Mahrang Baloch, however, rejected the PM's assertions, stating that their movement had always been clear about ending human rights violations in Balochistan and demanding cessation of the Baloch genocide. The protesters, who traveled over 1,600km from Balochistan's Turbat to stage their sit-in, have been joined by political figures, rights activists, and others who have long denounced killings by security agencies in "staged encounters. Critics and activists have decried PM Kakar's statements as an attempt to gaslight and provoke the peaceful protesters, with many calling them "disappointing and "insensitive.

Journalists and senators have also expressed outrage over the premier’s comments, with many calling for an apology and withdrawal of his remarks. The caretaker PM's words have further fueled the anger and determination of the protesters in Islamabad, who have vowed to persist in informing the world about the oppression and barbarism they face. The strike call on January 3 is seen as a demonstration of the growing momentum and solidarity among those seeking an end to the rights abuses and injustices in Balochistan.