Police on Saturday raided Quetta Press Club and arrested 32 candidates, who wanted to hold a presser over delay in issuance of appointment letters.
The candidates shortlisted under the SBK Testing Service for positions at various government run schools had been protesting for the past two days, demanding that the government should issue their appointment letters.
Muhammad Baloch, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Quetta, confirmed the arrests, stating that the candidates were detained for violating Section 144 and disrupting public order.
He added that the arrested individuals had been shifted to various police stations across the provincial capital.
Eyewitnesses reported that a heavy police contingent entered the press club and detained the candidates as they were about to hold a press conference.
One of the detained individuals expressed frustration, saying, "We came here to speak about our rights, not to create chaos, but police treated us like criminals."
The police action at the press club has sparked outrage among civil society and journalists. Balochistan Union of Journalists and Quetta Press Club strongly condemned the police action, calling it an attack on press freedom.
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