An Anti-Terrorism Court in Islamabad has ordered former Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister Khalid Khurshid Khan, who also heads the regional chapter of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), to be held in jail on judicial remand. The order was issued on Saturday in a case linked to the November 26 protest.
Judge Abul Hasanat Muhammad Zulqarnain heard the matter after police formally recorded Khurshid’s arrest in the case, which was registered at the Aabpara Police Station. Investigators had asked for a 30-day physical remand to question him, but the court turned down that request.
Custody at the Peshawar Speaker House
According to PTI’s official social media account, Khurshid was taken into custody on October 11 from the Speaker House in Peshawar. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati and several others were taken in the same operation, the party’s account said.
After the reported detention, Khurshid’s son, Hanifullah, approached the Peshawar High Court. He sought his father’s recovery and the preservation of CCTV footage from the Speaker House, naming the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa inspector general of police, the capital city police officer and other relevant authorities as respondents.
The petitioner said unidentified individuals had removed his father from the building at about 2am. He also alleged that police were unwilling to register a case over the incident.
Earlier sentence and political career
In December 2024, an anti-terrorism court in Gilgit-Baltistan sentenced Khurshid to 34 years in prison and imposed a fine of Rs600,000. That case concerned allegations that he had threatened security institutions during a public gathering.
Khurshid won a seat in the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly from Astore district on a PTI ticket in the 2020 general elections, and later became chief minister.
Disqualification over degree allegations
In July 2023, the Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Court disqualified him from holding public office. The court acted on allegations that he had obtained a licence from the GB Bar Council using a fraudulent educational degree.
That ruling brought his time as chief minister to an end and triggered a political realignment in the region.
