An anti-terrorism court in Pakistan has sentenced former Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Chief Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Khalid Khurshid to 34 years in prison on charges of threatening security agencies.
In addition to the long sentence, the court also imposed a fine of Rs 600,000 on the politician. The ATC further ordered the inspector general of police to arrest Khurshid and shift him to prison while serving his sentence.
As part of the ruling, the court ordered the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to block Khurshid’s computerized national identity card (CNIC), further complicating his legal situation.
The charges against Khurshid arise from an incident on May 26, 2024, during a PTI power show, where he allegedly issued threats against the GB chief secretary, chief election commissioner and security agencies.
An FIR was lodged against him at Gilgit City Police Station under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), with allegations that he had threatened officials with serious consequences.
However, despite the charges, Khurshid remained at large and did not appear for court proceedings.
Khurshid had served as Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan from 2020 until his disqualification in July 2023. His removal from office came following a ruling by the GB Chief Court, which disqualified him for submitting a false degree during his nomination process. .
The degree, purportedly from the University of London, was later verified as fake by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) following a formal investigation.
Khurshid, who joined PTI in 2018, had risen to the post of divisional president of Diamer-Astore. His involvement with the PTI also led to him being booked in multiple cases, including charges related to the party’s protests at D-Chowk in Islamabad in October.
