Muhammad Khalid Khurshid Khan (Urdu: محمد خالد خورشید خان ; born 17 November 1980) is a Pakistani lawyer and politician who is the current

Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister of Gilgit Baltistan is elected by the Gilgit Baltistan Assembly to serve as the head of the provincial government in Gilgit-Baltistan for a five-year term. The current Chief Minister is Khalid Khurshid, who was elected on 1 Decembe ...

''de-facto'' province of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, from the

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI; ur, , ) is a political party in Pakistan. It was founded in 1996 by Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The PTI is one of the thre ...

. He has been a member of the

Gilgit Baltistan Assembly The Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly (GBA), formerly known as Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly (GBLA), is a unicameral legislature of elected representatives of Autonomous territory (de-facto Pakistani province) of Gilgit-Baltistan, which is locat ...

since 25 November 2020.

Early life and education

Khan was born on 17 November 1980 in

Rattu Rattu is a small village town located at the Astore district in the Northern Areas now known as Gilgit Baltistan of Pakistan. Rattu has been traditionally used as a route for traders going to Kashmir from Astore, Gilgit and others parts of presen ...

area of Shounter Tehsil in

Astore District Astore District ( ur, ) is one of the 14 districts of the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilgit−Baltistan. Its administrative headquarters are located at Eidgah in the Astore Valley. The Astore District is bounded by Gilgit District to ...

. He belongs to the Machoque tribe. He matriculated from Public School and College,

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina: ; ur, ) is the capital city of Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan. The city is located in a broad valley near the confluence of the Gilgit River and the Hunza River. It is a major tourist destination in Pakistan, serving as a h ...

and did his graduation from

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

. He received degree in law from

Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...

, England. He practiced law in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

before returning to

to participate in politics.

Political career

Khalid Khurshid tabled Provisional Provincial Status Motion for

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...

and got it unanimously approved. Khalid is recognized as an expert in constitutional law which facilitated process of granting Provisional Provincial Status to

. Khalid is being credited for bringing in mega development projects in GB and for his vision of development by improving connectivty of region with rest of country. He started mega development projects like Astore Valley Road, Shah rahe Nagar, Shonter tunnel, Gilgit-Chitral Road, Darel Tangir Express Way and a Power Project in Ataabad,Hunza. He established Gilgit Baltistan Information Technology and Irrigation Departments as a special initiative of Chief Minister. Khalid launched a vigorous campaign for approval of mega development projects in Gilgit-Baltistan in federation and ultimately succeeded in approval of largest development package for the region. His political career started in 2009 when he lost his first election for

Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly The Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly (GBA), formerly known as Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly (GBLA), is a unicameral legislature of elected representatives of Autonomous territory (de-facto Pakistani province) of Gilgit-Baltistan, which is locat ...

as an independent candidate. He joined

on 28 July 2018. In 2019 appointed President of Pakistan

Tehreek-e-Insaf The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI; ur, , ) is a political party in Pakistan. It was founded in 1996 by Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The PTI is one of the thre ...

Astore- Diamer Division. Khan contested

2020 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly election The 2020 Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly elections were held on 15 November 2020. Elections will be held in 24 constituencies, each electing one member to the 3rd Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly. 330 candidates will contest these elections, eithe ...

on 15 November 2020 from constituency GBA-13 ( Astore-1) on the ticket of

. He won the election by the margin of 1,719 votes over the runner up Farman of PMLN. He garnered 6089 votes while the runnerup Rana Farman received 5000 plus votes. PTI had nominated Khalid Khurshid Khan as candidate for Chief Minister Gilgit-Baltistan on 27 November 2020. On 30 November 2020, he was elected as Chief Minister of Gigit-Baltistan. Under the GB Investment Program, Khalid partnered with the private sector and academia to attract new investors to invest in Gilgit-Baltistan and succeeded in signing thirty two MOU with various investors at

Dubai Expo Dubai (, ; ar, wikt:دبي, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates#Major cities, most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 ...

Personal life

Khalid belongs to an influential political family of

Gilgit Baltistan Gilgit (; Shina language, Shina: ; ur, ) is the capital city of Gilgit-Baltistan, Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan. The city is located in a broad valley near the confluence of the Gilgit River and the Hunza River. It is a major Tourism in Paki ...

. His father Justice (retd.) Muhammad Khurshid Khan won his seat with a big margin in first ever elections from Astore 1, GBLA 13, held in Gilgit Baltistan in 1973. He later on joined the judiciary and retired as Chief Justice, Chief Court of Gilgit-Baltistan in November 2004. His uncle, Haji Muhammad Inayat Khan, served as the chairman of District Council Diamer for three consecutive terms from 1981 to 1994. One of his brother, Atif Khurshid, was an International Civil Servant, worked for

United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...

as social policy head and currently working as

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of Social Benefit and Income Support at Ministry of Human Resource and Social Development,

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...

. Khalid's eldest brother, Dr. Arif Khurshid, is a surgeon in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Khalid's younger brother, Hanif Ullah Khan, is a civil servant currently posted as Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police. Khalid's sister, Ayesha Khurshid is deputy chief in Gilgit Baltistan's Planning and Development Department. Khalid is married into an influential Pirzada, Syed family of village

Gudai Gudai is a village in Astore District within the Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population o ...

, district Astore. Khalid's father in law Pirzada Muhammad Alam (late) was a well reputed civil servant. Khalid's wife, Mrs. Riffat Alam is a professor in KIU heading Media Sciences Department. Khalid is a disciple of acclaimed religious scholar Pir Mian Shafi Jhagvi of Neelum District in

Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (; ), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger Ka ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Muhammad Khalid Khurshid 1980 births Living people Gilgit-Baltistan MLAs 2020–2025 Politicians from Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Ministers of Gilgit-Baltistan People from Astore District Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf politicians