Kausty at 10:54, 14 April 2026

2026-04-14T10:54:51Z

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{{short description|Pakistani citizen|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{use Pakistani English|date=May 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2026}}
'''Dr Khaleel Chishty''' was a Pakistani citizen who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in January 2011 for killing a man after a fight in the Indian town of [[Ajmer]] in 1992. The trial lasted 18 years, during which he was kept under house arrest in his ancestral home in Ajmer.

In April 2012, during a meeting, Pakistan's President [[Asif Ali Zardari]] discussed Dr. Chishty's release with Indian Prime [[Manmohan Singh]]. In May 2012, the [[Supreme Court of India]] granted him bail on humanitarian grounds, allowing him to visit his home in [[Karachi]], Pakistan. He was required to return for his next court hearing on 20 November 2012.<ref>{{cite news|title=Pakistani doctor Khalil Chishti returns home from India|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-18082882|accessdate=25 November 2012|newspaper=bbc.co.uk|date=16 May 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=After securing permission from India SC, Dr Chishty due to return home by Wednesday|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/379012/after-securing-permission-from-india-sc-dr-chishty-due-to-return-home-by-wednesday/|accessdate=25 November 2012|newspaper=The Express Tribune|date=15 May 2012}}</ref> Upon his return to India, the Indian Supreme Court freed him by dropping the murder charges against him.<ref>{{cite news | title = Khalil Chishti, Pakistani doctor, freed by India court | date = 12 December 2012 | url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-20690682 | work = [[BBC News]] | accessdate = 1 May 2013}}</ref>

==Background==
Chishty was a Professor of virology in Karachi Medical College and also held a PhD from the [[University of Edinburgh]].<ref name="toi_1">{{cite news| url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-05-11/india/31668502_1_life-imprisonment-karachi-medical-college-karachi-home | archive-url=https://archive.today/20120708001114/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-05-11/india/31668502_1_life-imprisonment-karachi-medical-college-karachi-home | url-status=dead | archive-date=8 July 2012 | work=[[The Times of India]] | title=Supreme Court allows Chishty to visit Pak till Nov 1 on surety of 5 lakh | date=11 May 2012}}</ref>

==Arrest and prosecution==
In 1992, Chishty visited Ajmer to see his ailing mother. He was involved in a family feud which resulted in a man being murdered in the same year. He was arrested and charged with the murder though he protested his innocence all along. During the lengthy trial he remained under house arrest at his ancestral home in Ajmer.

In January 2011 he was finally convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in Ajmer jail. The trial lasted an unusual 18 long years.

==Clemency appeals==
On 17 June 2011, Justice [[Markandey Katju]] made a personal appeal to Prime Minister [[Manmohan Singh]] to release Chishty on humanitarian grounds. [[Bharatiya Janata Party|BJP]], the main Indian opposition party expressed its dismay at a judge writing to the [[Indian Prime Minister|Prime Minister]] for securing the release of a Pakistani prisoner in his individual capacity.<ref>{{cite news |title=SC judge urges PM to release 80-yr-old Pak murder convict, BJP finds it odd |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/SC-judge-urges-PM-to-release-80-yr-old-Pak-murder-convict-BJP-finds-it-odd/articleshow/8891735.cms |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105171336/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-17/india/29669538_1_murder-convict-sc-judge-pakistani-prisoner |url-status=live |archive-date=5 November 2012 |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |date=17 June 2011}}</ref>

In April 2012, Pakistan President Zardari appealed to Indian Prime Minister Singh to release him on humanitarian grounds and allow him to return to Pakistan.<ref>{{cite news | title = Zardari seeks PM's help for Chishty's repatriation | date = 13 April 2011 | url = http://ibnlive.in.com/news/zardari-seeks-pms-help-for-chishtys-repatriation/248480-56.html | archive-url = https://archive.today/20130629120538/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/zardari-seeks-pms-help-for-chishtys-repatriation/248480-56.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 29 June 2013 | work = [[CNN-IBN]] | accessdate = 1 May 2013}}</ref>

===Reference to the Sarabjit Singh case===
{{Main|Sarabjit Singh}}
In November 2012 ex-justice [[Markandey Katju|Katju]] wrote to the [[President of Pakistan|President]] and [[Prime Minister of Pakistan|Prime Minister]] of Pakistan requesting clemency for [[Sarabjit Singh]] on similar grounds. Sarabjit Singh is an Indian citizen who has also spent the last 22 years in Pakistani jail under conviction of terrorism. His family and supporters have maintained Sarabjit's innocence and claim that the arrest was on the grounds of mistaken identity.

==Release on bail==
At the intervention<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2120558.ece | location=Chennai, India | work=The Hindu | title=Manmohan writes to Chidambaram on Pakistani prisoner | date=20 June 2011}}</ref> of the Indian Prime Minister Dr Singh, the Indian supreme court granted Chishty bail on humanitarian grounds in April 2012. He was subsequently also allowed to visit Pakistan until 1 November 2012 on a security deposit of 500,000 [[Indian Rupees]].<ref name="toi_1" />

==Release==
On his return from bail in Pakistan, Dr. Chishty was freed by the Indian Supreme Court in December 2012 and allowed to return to Pakistan.<ref>{{cite news | title = Indian SC orders Dr Khalil Chishti's release | date = 12 December 2012 | url = http://tribune.com.pk/story/478783/indian-sc-orders-dr-khalil-chishtis-release/ | work = [[The Express Tribune]] | accessdate = 1 May 2013}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{India-Pakistan relations}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chishty, Khaleel}}
[[Category:Pakistani scientists]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Pakistani prisoners and detainees]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]

Khaleel Chishty - Revision history

Kausty at 10:54, 14 April 2026