Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Friday said the state was acting “very restrained” in response to what he described as India-linked unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), adding that decisions on governance would be made by elected representatives.

Responding to a question during a live press conference on protests in AJK and the way forward, the DG ISPR said the will of the people would be reflected through the political process.

“The will of the people will be decided by the politicians, and we believe that our respected politicians also desire good governance and administration. Stagnation is not the solution to anything. Even still water begins to stink after a while,” he said.

The DG ISPR said Kashmir remained central to Pakistan’s position. “Kashmir was, is and will remain the jugular vein of Pakistan,” he said. “There is only one voice that comes from Pakistan: ‘Kashmir Banega Pakistan.’ And the voice from Kashmir is that ‘we are Pakistanis.'”

“Nothing can change this because we have adopted a legal, principled and constitutional path. This is the unfinished agenda of Partition, and it is to be decided in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions and the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people,” he said.

The military spokesperson said Pakistan believed the people of Kashmir would choose Pakistan if given the opportunity. “We all have clarity that once the question is posed to both sides of Kashmir, they will choose Pakistan,” he said.

“Our religion and culture are the same, and the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir have seen the brutal, ugly side of the Indian Army. Who leaves the graves of their forefathers? This happened because of the brutality of the Indian side.”

The DG ISPR said Pakistan’s ideological foundation remained intact despite what he described as the actions of Indian proxies.

“Despite the work of Indian proxies, the ideological state of Pakistan, made on the basis of the Kalima, is one of the most consequential states of the modern world. This is God’s miracle, and we saw this during Operation Marka-e-Haq,” he said.

The DG ISPR said India had pursued multiple approaches in IIOJK.

“These sons of Kautilya have been trying multiple things. First was appeasement by spending billions of dollars. Were they able to buy the Kashmiris or Indian Muslims? Ask the minorities, such as the Sikhs. Kashmiris have said they are not for sale,” he said.

He added that IIOJK remained “the most garrisoned place in the world.” “Do you know Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir is the most garrisoned place in the world, with one million security forces and police?” he said.

“The second was legal changes, such as Article 370. But despite this, they have not been able to change the passion of the people of Occupied Kashmir for Pakistan,” he said.

‘Administrative reset should happen if needed for good governance’

DG ISPR also said an administrative reset should take place if it was required to ensure good governance, adding that any such changes must be carried out through constitutional and legal means and in accordance with the will of the people.

On Thursday, Naqvi said that Pakistan’s existing governance system had collapsed and was no longer capable of addressing the country’s challenges, calling for administrative reforms, including the creation of new administrative units, echoing the demand put forward by several political parties to create more provinces for better governance.

Responding to a question on whether he agreed with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s reported remarks that the governance system in Balochistan had failed, the DG ISPR said he would not comment on the minister’s statement.

He further stated that good governance was essential for Pakistan’s security and stability. “As a primary stakeholder in security, we would like to say that good governance is the key to security and stability. Without that, your issues cannot be solved,” he said.

The DG ISPR referred to the National Action Plan (NAP), saying it reflected a consensus among political parties over the past 12 years. “There is a National Action Plan that is an agreed consensus, which has 14 points, on which all political parties over the last 12 years have had consensus, whether they are in power or not,” he said.

“The first point is related to kinetics, but the other 13 — creating narratives, choking terror financing, tackling the illegal spectrum, including narcotics and smuggling, capacity building, repatriation of refugees and many other measures — all depend on good governance. So yes, good governance is quintessential for Pakistan.”

Asked how such governance could be achieved, the DG ISPR said the issue should be debated by political parties and those in government. “How to get that good governance is for the politicians and the political parties,” he said.

“But if you ask us, yes, there has to be a serious discussion because these issues are not being solved, which means something needs to be done,” he added.

The military spokesperson said Pakistan’s population had increased significantly since the 1972 census and governance structures should be reviewed accordingly.

“I think it was the 1972 census that recorded a population of 65 million. Today we are around 250 million. If your population has increased almost fivefold, we have to see whether this is serving good governance,” he said.

The DG ISPR said the debate should be led by elected representatives.

“That debate has to be essentially done by those in power, by politicians and those who are responsible for this for the people of Pakistan,” he said.

“The answer lies in the will of the people of Pakistan. The will of the people of Pakistan is supreme.”

“If good governance requires an administrative reset, then let that happen. If good governance requires changes, then let that happen, but it has to be done through constitutional and legal methods, and as per the will of the people,” he said.

Pakistan ‘not a hard state,’ says DG ISPR on Balochistan security situation

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Friday said Pakistan was “not a hard state”, as he outlined the country’s security situation and said security forces had killed an average of 10 terrorists every day so far this year.

Addressing a live press conference focused on Balochistan, the military spokesperson said the briefing would examine three questions: “What is the problem? What is happening? What is being done?”

“We will focus on Balochistan because there is a perception that the condition in Balochistan is very bad,” he said.

The DG ISPR said the first issue was not specific to Balochistan but related to Pakistan’s overall security environment.

“Are we a hard state? Unfortunately not,” he said.

Explaining the term, he said a hard state did not mean “a military-run state or an armed forces-dominated state.”

“When we say a hard state, it means a state in which the law is equal for all, all issues are dealt with through the law, there is no elitism and everyone is equal before the law,” he said.

The DG ISPR then spoke about what he described as “obligations versus rights.”

“We are all talking about our rights. We are taking up grievances, taking up arms and raising slogans based on rights. But before these rights, we have some obligations,” he said.

Citing Article 5 of the Constitution, he said: “Loyalty to the state is the basic duty of every citizen. Obedience to the Constitution and the law is the obligation of every citizen.”

“The law is clear that we all have a basic responsibility. We need to be loyal to the state. Then you can talk about your rights. We first have to speak about our obligations,” he added.

Referring to Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir’s address at the National Workshop on Balochistan, the DG ISPR said the army chief had also stressed the importance of obligations.

“Asim Munir, at the National Workshop on Balochistan, said yes, we talk about rights, but why don’t we talk about obligations? What are they?” he said.

The DG ISPR said every citizen’s “first and last identity” should be Pakistani.

“Isn’t it every citizen’s obligation that our first and last identity is Pakistani, not that we talk about our provincial identity? Because our identity is that we are citizens of the state,” he said.

“Our obligation is that we must acknowledge the fundamental and central position of the State of Pakistan,” he added.

Turning to the security situation, the military spokesperson said security forces had conducted 40,348 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) across the country so far this year, with the majority taking place in Balochistan.

“Nearly 194 intelligence-based operations are being conducted every day,” he said.

The DG ISPR said 3,145 terrorist incidents had been recorded during the period, while security forces had killed 2,084 terrorists, averaging about 10 terrorists being killed every day.

He said 819 people had embraced martyrdom this year, including 303 personnel from the Pakistan Army, 194 law enforcement agencies and 322 civilians.

The DG ISPR said there had been 28 suicide bombing incidents this year, adding that the majority of the suicide bombers were Afghan nationals.

“The majority of them are Afghanis. The Afghan national involved in the Tank attack was also an Afghani. Afghan nationals and people associated with their security forces are among the terrorists killed and captured,” he said.

Comparing the figures with previous years, he said security forces had killed 2,597 terrorists during the whole of 2025, while 2,084 had already been killed so far in 2026.

“If you look at 2023, our martyr ratio was higher and we were killing fewer terrorists. In 2024, the tide started turning. By 2025, for each martyr we were taking out two terrorists,” he said.

Responding to a question about the rise in terrorist incidents, the DG ISPR said: “You must ask why incidents are increasing. It has to do with the agenda of terrorists affiliated with the Taliban and with the clarity that Pakistan has. These terrorists have come to understand that there is no room for appeasement now.”

“Once they know that the state is very clearly telling them, ‘Submit in front of the state, otherwise we are here, we are standing here and fighting,’ it changes the dynamic,” he said.

The DG ISPR added that the increase in incidents was also linked to more proactive intelligence-based operations.

“Once we get more proactive and engage, once we are doing more effective intelligence-based operations, there will be engagement and incidents increase,” he said.

‘Elitism’, external actors and propaganda

DG ISPR said “elitism and sardarism”, a desire to maintain the status quo, external actors and propaganda were among the factors behind the security situation in Balochistan.

The military spokesperson said these were the “fundamental” issues specific to Balochistan. “This is the fundamental thing, specific to Balochistan,” he said.

The DG ISPR said “elitism and sardarism and the desire to maintain the status quo” were among the root causes.

“We have to get to the root cause today. This is the part of society that thinks it has no obligation but only rights — the elites, part of them,” he said.

“They think that this status quo must be maintained, a status quo where a normal citizen should not study, should not progress, should do nothing, so he can be my slave, be my driver, walk around like my guard because I’m special.”

The DG ISPR said they were “prime movers of terrorism.”

“They are afraid that times are changing. The more afraid they are, the more anxious they become, the more kinetic they get,” he said.

The military spokesperson also spoke about what he described as a “desire for appeasement.”

“They think, ‘We will do terrorism and then talk. Talk with us. Appease us like you used to.’ We don’t want to talk to you. We will talk to the real people of Balochistan. You are not a stakeholder,” he said.

The DG ISPR said some people believed the Balochistan Levies were “our personal army.”

“They have a habit that this Levies force is our personal army. Half of the guy’s salary is mine, the other half will be my personal guard,” he said.

He added that the Levies force was being turned into a police force.

The DG ISPR also said some people were accustomed to, “in the name of trade”, carrying out smuggling.

“They are used to, in the name of trade, doing smuggling, bringing narcotics and diesel and selling it at six times the price,” he said.

“If you try to stop them, then they will do terrorism and raise slogans that Balochistan is out of our hands. They say, ‘Open my permits. Give me my share from the Rs1,000 billion budget.'”

The military spokesperson also referred to what he described as an “external power play.”

“They know that Balochistan is blessed not only with vibrant human resources but also natural resources. Allah has given it all blessings. They know the potential of this,” he said.

“They get physically involved with these terrorists and they find ready partners in these sardars. They want the same slaves and private jails. They want to see the system they saw during their grandfathers’ time.”

Referring to Afghanistan, the DG ISPR said: “It’s not Afghanistan, it’s the Afghan Taliban regime.”

“Their business is terrorism, and through terrorism they sustain their economy and diplomacy,” he said.

He also said there was “no difference” between “Fitna al Hindustan” and “Khawarij.”

Turning to what he described as propaganda, the DG ISPR said it had four “verticals”: “the sense of deprivation, lack of representation, the missing persons narrative, and terrorism propaganda.”

Addressing what he described as the “sense of deprivation,” the DG ISPR cited development projects and budget allocations in Balochistan.

He said Gwadar had three universities, four colleges, the Pak-China Hospital, five child dispensaries, an international airport, a seaport, an expressway, industrial free zones, tax-free zones and a cricket stadium.

“In all of Pakistan, tell me another city with a population of 300,000 that has all this,” he said.

The DG ISPR said Turbat, with a population of around 500,000, had two universities, colleges, an international airport and road connectivity.

“Tell me another city of such a population with all this,” he said.

He added that Balochistan had 13 major hospitals and 650 dispensaries.

The DG ISPR also referred to the province’s per capita budget allocation.

“Look at the budget per capita. Per capita is Rs75,000-plus, more than any other province. What deprivation is rooted in?” he said.

He said development projects were being targeted.

“That’s why they kill labourers, attack roads. Whoever wants to work in schools or teach, we will kill them, so that the sardars’ army stays ready,” he said.

Speaking about political representation, the DG ISPR said the same families continued to dominate electoral politics.

“Take out the lists of the assemblies. The same families, the same parties. They win, then their father or brother wins. If they win, it’s democracy; if not, then it’s rigging. What representation is this?” he said.

Addressing the issue of missing persons, the military spokesperson referred to the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances.

“They say thousands have been picked up. The government made a commission so that if there is someone missing, there would be a name,” he said.

The DG ISPR said the commission had received a total of 10,901 cases since the early 2010s.

“More than 9,000 cases have been disposed of. Of those, around 5,000 people have gone back home, others are in custody, 308 were found to have died, and around 2,400 were found not to be cases of missing persons,” he said.

He added that around 2,700 cases remained pending.

The DG ISPR said there were more pending cases in Sindh than in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He also said some people included in lists of missing persons had later been killed while carrying out terrorist activities.

“Some are in Turbat, do terrorism, are killed and then are included in the missing persons list,” he said.

Turning to what he described as terrorism propaganda, the DG ISPR said attacks were sometimes filmed to generate content.

“A guy attacking a police station is being filmed because we have to give content to show that there is a problem in Balochistan, so people can say, ‘Look, this has happened,'” he said.

This story is being updated.