-By LeN Defence Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -12.Aug.2025, 9.00 PM) Lanka e News has confirmed that the Government of India has issued passports to members of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) — a militant group proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the United States. The revelation has triggered alarm in Colombo, given that Indian passport holders can enter Sri Lanka without a visa.
Security officials fear that such an arrangement could give BLA operatives unfettered access to the island, creating a new vector for destabilisation — particularly in the context of India’s historically complex role in Sri Lanka’s internal affairs. Of immediate concern is the BLA’s record of targeting Chinese nationals and strategic projects in Pakistan, which echoes the geopolitical chess game that places Colombo in the crosshairs of India–China rivalries.
The BLA and its suicide-attack wing, the Majeed Brigade, were this week reaffirmed on the US State Department’s list of Foreign Terrorist Organisations (FTOs), with the Majeed Brigade now officially recognised as an alias. The BLA has been on the Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) list since 2019, following a string of deadly assaults.
Since then, its campaign of violence has escalated. In 2024, the group claimed responsibility for suicide bombings near Karachi Airport and the Gwadar Port Authority Complex — both sites of strategic significance in Pakistan’s China-backed development corridor. In March 2025, BLA militants hijacked the Jaffar Express, a passenger train travelling from Quetta to Peshawar, killing 31 civilians and security personnel, and holding more than 300 passengers hostage for hours.
The possibility of BLA operatives entering Sri Lanka on legitimate Indian passports is not theoretical, analysts warn. The island is a known transit point for various regional actors, licit and illicit. Visa-free entry for Indian citizens — intended to boost tourism and trade — could inadvertently provide a pathway for militant infiltration.
China, Sri Lanka’s largest infrastructure investor, has been repeatedly targeted by BLA attacks in Pakistan. Should BLA networks expand into Sri Lanka, they could pose a direct threat to Chinese diplomatic staff, engineers, and construction teams stationed at ports, power plants, and Belt and Road Initiative projects.
A senior Sri Lankan intelligence officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said:
“If these reports about Indian passports for BLA members are accurate, it means India could be embedding its proxies in our backyard — with official documentation. That is a strategic nightmare.”
India’s interest in Balochistan is hardly new. New Delhi has long accused Islamabad of harbouring insurgents targeting India’s own territories, particularly in Kashmir, while Pakistan alleges that India funds and trains separatists in Balochistan as a counterweight.
What is new — and dangerous — is the use of Indian passports, a tool that provides not just mobility but legitimacy. Such documentation enables militants to bypass immigration scrutiny in multiple jurisdictions, particularly where India enjoys preferential visa agreements.
For Sri Lanka, this development revives uncomfortable memories of the 1980s, when India provided support to Tamil militant groups — including the LTTE — only to later fight them in a bloody counter-insurgency. The precedent for proxies, once unleashed, spiralling out of control is all too familiar.
The United States’ designation of the BLA as an FTO provides a clear legal and diplomatic framework for Sri Lanka to act. Following Washington’s lead could allow Colombo to freeze any assets linked to the group, restrict travel by suspected members, and signal to both allies and adversaries that it will not serve as a permissive space for proxy operations.
Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, but security sources suggest an inter-agency review is under way.
Whether this remains a regional intelligence intrigue or escalates into an open diplomatic confrontation may depend on Colombo’s next move. As one retired diplomat put it:
“Sri Lanka must choose between ignoring the danger until it lands at Bandaranaike International Airport — or acting now, even if it displeases the neighbours.”
-By LeN Defence Correspondent
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by (2025-08-12 15:34:23)
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