Pakistan is facing sustained unrest in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), where residents are mounting some of the most vocal protests in years against land acquisition, power shortages and decades of political exclusion. In response, Islamabad has increased security deployments, launched arrests of local leaders and expanded the presence of paramilitary forces across key towns, drawing renewed attention to its control over a region India maintains is under illegal occupation.
Demonstrations and sit-ins have been reported from parts of Gilgit, Skardu, Ghizer, Darel and Hunza, with traders’ bodies, student groups and civil-society activists accusing the Pakistan government of treating the region as a colony rather than as an equal part of the federation.
Street Anger Over Land, Wheat And Blackouts
The immediate triggers for the latest wave of protests include rising wheat prices, restricted subsidised supplies and prolonged electricity outages during the winter months. Residents say they are facing power cuts lasting up to 20 hours a day in some areas, despite living in a region that hosts major hydropower projects on the Indus and its tributaries.
Alongside the economic grievances is growing anger over land acquisition. Locals allege that land has been taken for dams, road corridors and federal projects linked to the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) without fair compensation or meaningful consultation. Community elders and activists argue that Islamabad treats GB’s mountains, rivers and valleys as federal property while denying the people any share of royalties from mega-projects executed on their soil.
A Region Without Constitutional Rights
Gilgit-Baltistan’s political status lies at the heart of the crisis. Unlike Pakistan’s four provinces, GB is not covered by the Constitution and has no representation in the National Assembly or Senate. The region is run through ad-hoc governance orders issued from Islamabad, with key powers resting in the hands of the federal Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and senior officers deputed from outside.
Legal experts and human-rights organisations have repeatedly pointed out that GB’s residents cannot approach the Supreme Court of Pakistan as full citizens can. This constitutional vacuum, they say, allows federal and military authorities to exercise sweeping control over land, minerals and administration without effective checks.
India, for its part, maintains that Gilgit-Baltistan is part of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir under the 1947 Instrument of Accession. New Delhi has consistently referred to the region as being under Pakistan’s unlawful occupation, and has objected to projects such as CPEC passing through the area.
Security Clampdown, Arrests And Intimidation
As protests have grown, Pakistan’s response has been largely coercive. Local reports speak of an increased presence of Rangers and other paramilitary units in towns where demonstrations have been most frequent. Several activists associated with rights campaigns and student bodies have been detained under harsh security laws, with families alleging that cases are being framed to deter further mobilisation.
Journalists in the region have also reported pressure. Media professionals say they have been warned against extensive coverage of rallies or criticism of federal policies, reinforcing the perception that Islamabad is seeking to manage GB primarily through control rather than accommodation.
Human-rights groups based outside Pakistan have documented patterns of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and intimidation of those demanding autonomy, ownership rights or constitutional integration. They describe the current situation as the outcome of years of centralised rule that has kept the region politically voiceless while exploiting its strategic and economic value.
Strategic Corridor, Restive Population
Gilgit-Baltistan is crucial to Pakistan’s external and internal calculations. It forms the northern gateway to CPEC, linking China’s Xinjiang region to the Karakoram Highway and further down to Pakistani territory. It also sits close to critical sectors of India’s northern frontier.
Analysts say Islamabad’s priority in GB appears to be securing transit routes and large infrastructure assets rather than addressing local grievances. This perception has fuelled a sense of betrayal among residents, who argue that their homeland is being used as a corridor and resource base, not treated as a region whose people are entitled to full rights.
India has repeatedly rejected Pakistan’s activities in GB, including Chinese-backed projects, as violations of its sovereignty. Developments on the ground are now drawing increased attention to conditions in the region and to the demands of its people for political recognition and control over their land and resources.
Growing Resistance To Pakistan’s Control
The persistence of protests, despite detentions and a heavy security presence, suggests that discontent in Gilgit-Baltistan is deep-rooted. Local groups say they are no longer willing to accept a system where decisions about their future are made in Islamabad without their participation.
As Pakistan struggles with economic pressures and internal political churn, the unrest in GB adds another front that Islamabad will find difficult to ignore. For now, the state’s answer has been more forceful and tighter control. The people on the streets are demanding something very different: rights, representation and an end to what they see as decades of unequal and exploitative rule.