India on Sunday categorically rejected as baseless Pakistan's allegations of an Indian hand in attempts to disturb peace in Balochistan, and said it is Islamabad's usual tactics to deflect attention from its "internal failings".
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, trashing the charges, also highlighted Pakistan's record of suppression, brutality and violation of human rights.
"We categorically reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan, which are nothing but its usual tactics to deflect attention from its own internal failings," he said.
Jaiswal was responding to Pakistan military's unsubstantiated claim that India was supporting terrorist elements in their attempts to disturb peace in Balochistan.
"Instead of parroting frivolous claims each time there is a violent incident, it would do better to focus on addressing long-standing demands of its people in the region. Its record of suppression, brutality and violation of human rights is well known," he added.
The military's media wing, ISPR, said the attacks were carried out by Indian-sponsored militants and that security forces had thwarted attempts to seize control of any city or strategic installation.
Pakistan's security forces killed 145 militants over 40 hours after coordinated attacks across Balochistan, the chief minister of the southwestern province said on Sunday, as the authorities battle one of the deadliest flare-ups in years.
The attacks underscore the persistence of insurgents in the resource-rich province bordering Iran and Afghanistan, where separatist militant groups have stepped up assaults on security forces, civilians and infrastructure.
The death toll includes militants killed in raids on Friday and Saturday, as well as additional militants killed during ongoing clearance operations, the chief minister of Balochistan, Sarfaraz Bugti, told a press conference in Quetta.
The military had said 92 militants were killed on Saturday.
The latest total is the highest number of militants killed in such a short span since the insurgency intensified, Bugti said, without providing comparative figures.
He also said 17 law enforcement personnel and 31 civilians were killed in the attacks.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and poorest province, has faced a decades-long insurgency led by ethnic Baloch separatists seeking greater autonomy and a larger share of its natural resources.