'Focus inward, not blame': India rejects Pak claim on Jaffar Express attack

Rejecting Pakistan's allegations, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the world knows where the epicentre of terrorism lies, and Pakistan must stop shifting blame and take responsibility

India on Friday firmly rejected Pakistan’s allegations of its involvement in the Jaffar Express attack.   

Responding to the claims, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We strongly reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan. The whole world knows where the epicentre of global terrorism lies. Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures on to others.” 

  On Thursday, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan alleged that the attackers behind the Jaffar Express incident had links with leaders in Afghanistan. “India has been involved in terrorism in Pakistan. In the particular attack on Jaffar Express, the terrorists had been in contact with their handlers and ring leaders in Afghanistan,” Khan said during his weekly press briefing.  

Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been high, with frequent border clashes and Islamabad accusing the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) of using Afghan territory to launch attacks. Kabul has denied these claims.   

On Tuesday, Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) separatists hijacked a passenger train travelling from Quetta to Peshawar, holding hundreds of passengers hostage in Balochistan’s Bolan region. Pakistan’s security forces reported that they killed all 33 BLA separatists involved in the hijacking of the Jaffar Express, which carried over 400 passengers. The Pakistani Army described the rescue mission as a “successful operation”.

 

Stance of Balochistan Liberation Army

Meanwhile, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has disputed these claims, asserting that the military was concealing a defeat. BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch stated, “the battle is still ongoing across multiple fronts”. 

He further alleged that the Pakistani army had “neither achieved victory on the battlefield nor managed to save its hostage personnel,” accusing authorities of "abandoning its own soldiers" and leaving them “to die as hostages”.   

Passengers who arrived in Quetta recounted to Pakistani media that BLA fighters had voluntarily released women, children, and elderly individuals shortly after seizing the train.   

The BLA has also challenged Pakistani authorities to allow independent journalists and neutral observers into the conflict zone, arguing that the military’s refusal to do so signals its “defeat”. 

 

Taliban rejects Pak claim

The Taliban on Thursday dismissed Pakistan’s allegations that militants based in Afghanistan were involved in the hijacking of the Jaffar Express train in Balochistan.   

“We categorically reject baseless allegations by the Pakistani army spokesperson linking the attack on a passenger train in Balochistan province with Afghanistan, and urge the Pakistani side to focus on resolving their own security and internal problems instead of such irresponsible remarks,” said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  

 

[With agency inputs]