Mahrang Baloch was sentenced to life imprisonment alongside fellow activist Sibghatullah over the killing of a paramilitary soldier during a 2024 rally.
The verdict triggered criticism from rights groups and international activists.
They argued the case reflects a broader crackdown on dissent and rights advocacy in Pakistan.
Pakistani activist Mahrang Baloch, one of the country’s most prominent campaigners against enforced disappearances in Balochistan, has been sentenced to life imprisonment over the killing of a paramilitary soldier during a rally in 2024, drawing criticism from rights groups and supporters who allege the case was politically motivated.
Baloch, leader of the Balochistan Unity Committee (BYC), was convicted on charges of murder and terrorism alongside fellow activist Sibghatullah. She had been arrested by police in the early hours of 22 March 2025 while participating in a peaceful sit-in protest in Quetta, Balochistan.
Prosecutors alleged that the two activists incited a mob that fatally attacked paramilitary soldier Shabbir Ahmed during a protest in the port city of Gwadar.
A security official accused Baloch of delivering a "very provocative speech", which allegedly led 30–40 people to attack one of the soldiers’ vehicles with sticks and stones. According to the official, Ahmed became separated from the group and was beaten to death.
In its ruling, an anti-terrorism court in Quetta said Baloch and Sibghatullah had been "active in the illegal gathering of the Baloch Unity Committee and had common objectives in the murder of the Federal Constabulary official".
The court sentenced both activists to life imprisonment and ordered them to pay a fine of 200,000 Pakistani rupees to Ahmed’s heirs.
Baloch and Sibghatullah, who have already spent two years in jail on multiple charges according to local media, have denied the allegations. They, along with their legal team, boycotted the trial.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan called for an immediate review of the verdict, saying the state had "continued its policy of treating fundamental rights advocacy in the same way it treats extremism, resulting in administrative and judicial decisions that are one-sided and biased."
Baloch’s sister, lawyer Nadia Baloch, and the activists’ legal team rejected the ruling and argued that due process had been denied. They described the proceedings as being conducted by a "faceless court" and said defence lawyers had not been allowed to properly cross-examine eyewitnesses, who testified via video link.
Swedish activist Greta Thunberg also criticised the proceedings, calling the trial a "mockery of justice" conducted "in utter secrecy" and accusing the Pakistani state of criminalising dissent.
A spokesperson for Balochistan’s government told the Associated Press that prosecutors had "undeniable evidence" and maintained that the case was not politically motivated.
Mahrang Baloch, who was included in the BBC’s 100 Women list in 2024 and recognised by Time Magazine as one of its 100 Next Emerging Leaders, began campaigning after her father was allegedly taken by security service officers in 2009 and found dead two years later with signs of torture.
In late 2023, she led hundreds of women on a 1,000-mile (1,600km) march to Islamabad seeking justice for missing family members.
Her organisation, the BYC, campaigns against enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Balochistan, a province that has witnessed a decades-long movement demanding greater autonomy.
The BYC rejects claims made by the government of Pakistan that it has links to Baloch militants.
