ABBOTTABAD: An anti-terrorism court on Monday dismissed the bail application of the main accused in the murder case of Dr Warda Mushtaq of Benazir Shaheed Teaching Hospital, Abbottabad.

The court also rejected the request of Rida Waheed and her husband, Waheed alias Billa, that the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act be quashed from the FIR registered against them.

All the accused persons will now be tried under the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act. The court gave its verdict after hearing the arguments of lawyers from both sides.

On December 4, 2025, Dr Warda was taken from the hospital by her friend, Rida Waheed, to her house on the pretext of returning the 67 tolas of gold jewellery she had taken from her. However, the medic’s body was later recovered from the Leli Banuta forest on December 8.

Lawyer Atif Ali Jadoon is pleading the case of Dr Warda.

The provincial doctors’ association has hailed the court’s verdict as a step towards ensuring justice for the family of Dr Warda.

Published in Dawn, April 14th, 2026