'Snakes in its own backyard’: Ex-envoy calls Pakistan ‘Terror’s Frankenstein’ now facing its own creation

Former envoy says Islamabad’s policies have “come back to bite” as the TTP turns on its creators and unrest grows in PoK and Balochistan.

Former Indian diplomat Yash Sinha on Sunday said Pakistan was facing the direct fallout of its own terror policies, calling it 'ironical' that Islamabad portrays itself as a victim while continuing to nurture extremist groups.

Speaking to ANI, Sinha said Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had long sponsored the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has now turned its guns on the same establishment that once backed it.

“Obviously terrorism or extremism emanating from across the borders is problematic,” Sinha said. “That is why India and Pakistan have such bad relations, because Pakistan is a state sponsor of terrorism.”

‘The snakes Pakistan reared are now biting back’

Sinha likened the current crisis to the words of former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who once warned Islamabad that “if you rear snakes in your backyard, they will bite you.”

“Similarly, the Frankenstein that Pakistan created in the 80s and 90s is now coming back to bite them,” Sinha said. “These extremist elements like the TTP were encouraged by Pakistan and its ISI, and now they have turned against their mentor.”

The former envoy explained that the TTP and Afghan Taliban share the same extremist ideology, which makes it easier for them to find “shelter and support” in Afghanistan. “Pakistan says it is a victim of terrorism, but it is sheer irony, because they reared terrorism in the first place,” he said.

‘Pakistan army’s wrong policies are imploding internally’

Sinha said Pakistan’s powerful military establishment bears responsibility for the growing unrest within its borders. “The Pakistan army is very strong and professional. We should not underestimate it. However, their wrong policies and those of successive governments have encouraged fissiparous tendencies across Pakistan,” he told ANI.

He pointed to mounting discontent in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Gilgit-Baltistan, where locals have grown frustrated with Islamabad’s tight control.

“They rule PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan like colonies, and the people there do not want that. They want political freedoms that are not available to them,” Sinha said. “It’s ironic that people in Jammu and Kashmir in India have those political freedoms, while in PoK they are completely absent.”

‘Repression in PoK and Balochistan is unimaginable’

Sinha said the Pakistani army’s repression in these regions was 'unimaginable,' adding that Islamabad’s heavy-handed rule was unsustainable without public support.

He also pointed to decades of unrest in Balochistan, where separatist movements have long challenged the writ of the state. “The international community is largely silent on Balochistan. But the truth is that the writ of the Pakistan government doesn’t run in a large part of that province,” he said.

Recalling the region’s history, Sinha noted that the Khan of Kalat had refused to join Pakistan in 1947, and was later forced to submit. “There’s always been a problem as far as Balochistan is concerned. The denial of rights over the decades has only made it worse,” he added.