QUETTA, Pakistan: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Quetta has extended the custody of Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leader Dr Mahrang Baloch and several other members for another 15 days, marking the sixth consecutive remand extension, her legal team said.
Advocate Israr Baloch told reporters that Dr Mahrang, along with organisers Beebow Baloch, Sibghatullah Shahji, Gulzadi, and Beeberg Baloch, appeared before Judge Muhammad Ali Mubeen of ATC-I, who approved the extension at the police’s request.
Initially detained under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) for 30 days, Dr Mahrang’s custody was subsequently extended by the Balochistan Home Department before fresh cases were lodged under the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Pakistan Penal Code. An ATC in Karachi also issued a non-bailable warrant in a sedition case, increasing legal pressures on her.
Speaking after the proceedings, Dr Mahrang dismissed the hearings as a “pre-written script,” claiming the charges were “fabricated” to suppress her democratic and peaceful political activism. She also raised concerns over the disappearance of Mahjabeen Baloch, a disabled university student allegedly abducted in May, and criticised a broader trend of enforced disappearances targeting women and students.
BYC lawyers condemned the repeated remands as violations of fundamental rights and said they would approach higher courts for relief. Dr Mahrang reiterated that the Baloch community would continue its struggle for constitutional and democratic rights.
