ATC sentences prominent Baloch activist Mahrang Baloch to life imprisonment

By Asmat Sumalani

QUETTA: An anti-terrorism court has sentenced prominent Baloch rights activist Dr Mahrang Baloch and her co-accused, Sibghatullah, to two concurrent life imprisonment terms over the killing of a security official during a 2024 protest.

Muhammad Ali Mubeen, judge of the Anti-Terrorism Court-I in Quetta, found both leaders guilty of terrorism and the murder of Frontier Corps (FC) personnel Shabbir Ahmed.

The casualty occurred during the “Baloch Raji Muchi” (Baloch National Gathering) protest demonstration led by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) in the coastal city of Gwadar in July 2024.

The prosecution argued that Ahmed died after being struck by a stone during the demonstration. Both Mahrang and Sibghatullah were formally nominated in the murder case, with the state holding them legally responsible for the official’s death.

According to the written judgment, the court ruled that Mahrang and Sibghatullah, widely known as Shah Jee, played an active role in the unlawful assembly and shared a common objective in the killing. They were sentenced under Sections 302-B, 147, and 148 of the Pakistan Penal Code and ordered to pay Rs200,000 ($720) each in compensation to the victim’s legal heirs, failing which they will face an additional six months of imprisonment.

The two activists, who have been detained since March 2025 in connection with separate cases, underwent their trial via an online video link from the Quetta District Jail. Defense lawyers indicated they intend to appeal the verdict in the high court, maintaining that the leadership is being judicially targeted for organizing peaceful public assemblies.

The BYC has been leading a high-profile advocacy campaign and long marches against alleged forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in the volatile, resource-rich Balochistan province, frequently drawing large crowds and facing severe crackdowns from state authorities.

Anti-Terrorism Charges

State investigators said the broader legal proceedings against Mahrang and other BYC members began in the aftermath of a March 11, 2025, insurgent attack on the Jaffar Express train, which left 26 people dead.

Following a security operation against those attackers, the bodies of slain militants were transferred to Civil Hospital Quetta. According to investigators, a crowd led by Mahrang allegedly stormed the hospital, entered the mortuary, and forcibly removed at least five bodies of the suspected terrorists. Legal proceedings were initiated against her and her aides within days of the incident.

Mahrang was subsequently detained under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance on March 22, 2025, while fellow BYC leader Gulzadi Baloch was arrested in connection with the incident on April 11, 2025.

The formal charges against Mahrang fall under Sections 11-EE and 11-F of Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism Act 1997—provisions that deal with individuals placed on the state’s watch list (Fourth Schedule) and those accused of supporting proscribed organizations. Anti-terrorism trials in Pakistan are routinely subject to enhanced security measures due to a history of judicial and law enforcement officials being targeted by militant violence.

Activists Profiles

Dr. Mahrang Baloch, a medical doctor who earned her MBBS degree from the Bolan Medical College, belongs to the Lango tribe of the Kalat district, though her family has long been settled in Quetta. She rose to prominence leading high-profile advocacy campaigns against state crackdowns.

Co-convict Sibghatullah is a key organizer within the BYC, hailing from the Turbat area of the Kech district. He is the son of the late Maulana Abdul Haq Baloch, a well-known religious and political leader who previously served as a member of Pakistan’s National Assembly.