Gilgit-Baltistan Independence Day, 1 November

Gilgit-Baltistan Independence Day, on 1 November, marks the 1947 revolt in which the Gilgit Scouts arrested the Dogra governor of Gilgit and the region turned to Pakistan. It is a public holiday across Gilgit-Baltistan, and the main flag hoisting is held at Chinar Bagh in Gilgit. In 2026 the day falls on a Sunday and is the 79th anniversary.

This guide sets out what happened in those two weeks of 1947, who the main figures were, how the day is observed now, and what it means in practice if you are in Gilgit at the start of November.

What happened on 1 November 1947?

In 1947 Gilgit was part of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. The British had leased the Gilgit area from the Maharaja in 1935 and ran it themselves, then handed it back on 1 August 1947, two weeks before independence. The Maharaja sent Brigadier Ghansara Singh as governor; he had been appointed on 18 July.

The only organised force in Gilgit was the Gilgit Scouts, a local corps raised in 1913 with 656 men and still commanded by two British officers: Major William Brown, who was 24, and his deputy Captain A. S. Mathieson, based at Chilas. When the Maharaja acceded to India in late October, the Scouts and most of the population wanted Pakistan.

The sequence, as recorded in Brown's own account and later histories:

1. Night of 31 October. The Scouts surrounded the governor's residency in Gilgit. Ghansara Singh was taken into custody, with Subedar-Major Babar Khan of the Scouts making the arrest.
2. 1 November. Brown informed the chief minister of the North-West Frontier Province in Peshawar of what had happened. Accounts describe the takeover in Gilgit itself as bloodless.
3. 2 November. The Pakistani flag was raised on the old tower in the Gilgit Scout Lines.
4. Early November. At Bunji, on the Indus south of Gilgit, Muslim soldiers of the state forces joined the revolt under Captain Mirza Hassan Khan. This part was not bloodless.
5. 16 November. Pakistan's political agent, Khan Mohammad Alam Khan, arrived and took over the administration.

In between, a provisional government ran Gilgit for 16 days, with Raja Shah Rais Khan as president and Mirza Hassan Khan as commander-in-chief. The rulers of Hunza and Nagar signed accession to Pakistan on 3 and 18 November.

Who were the main figures?

Major William Brown was a Scottish officer, born in Melrose in 1922, who commanded the Scouts in 1947. Britain gave him an MBE in 1948. Pakistan awarded him the Sitara-e-Pakistan after his death in 1984, and his widow received it in 1994. His diary was published in 1998 as The Gilgit Rebellion.

Subedar-Major Babar Khan was the senior local officer of the Scouts and is remembered in Gilgit as one of the leaders of the revolt. Captain Mirza Hassan Khan led the state force soldiers who came over at Bunji. Raja Shah Rais Khan headed the short-lived provisional government.

How much credit belongs to Brown and how much to the local officers is still argued over in Gilgit, and speeches on the day usually give it to the Scouts and the people of the region.

What about Baltistan?

Gilgit changed hands in a night. Baltistan took nine more months. A column built around the Gilgit Scouts moved up the Indus and besieged the state garrison in Skardu from 11 February 1948. The garrison under Colonel Sher Jung Thapa surrendered on 14 August 1948, by which time Chitral Scouts and Chitral state troops under Colonel Mata-ul-Mulk had taken over the siege.

For that reason the region used to mark two dates: 1 November for Gilgit and 14 August for Skardu. After the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of August 2009, which also replaced the name Northern Areas, 1 November became the single official day. In Skardu, 14 August still carries a double meaning.

Why Gilgit-Baltistan is still not a province

The 1947 revolt settled who governed Gilgit. It did not settle the legal question, because Pakistan treats the region as part of the wider Kashmir dispute that awaits a final settlement.

Administration passed to the federal government under the Karachi Agreement of 1949. The area was merged into a single unit called the Northern Areas in 1972, gained an elected assembly and its present name in 2009, and was promised provisional provincial status in 2020. That announcement was made at this very ceremony, by Prime Minister Imran Khan in Gilgit on 1 November 2020. It has not yet been written into the constitution.

This is why speeches on 1 November often turn to constitutional rights as well as history. Our history of Gilgit guide covers the longer story.

How is the day marked?

The central ceremony is at Chinar Bagh, the riverside park in Gilgit that holds the Yadgar-e-Shuhada, the martyrs' memorial. Based on reports of recent years, it runs like this:

• Wreath laying and Fateha at the memorial.
• Flag hoisting, normally by the Governor with the Chief Minister and the Force Commander Northern Areas present, along with veterans.
• A parade and march past by contingents of the forces.
• Speeches, national songs and awards, followed by cultural performances.

Smaller flag hoistings are held in every district headquarters. In 2025, which was reported as the 78th anniversary, President Asif Ali Zardari attended the Gilgit ceremony. In 2019 Imran Khan became the first sitting prime minister to attend.

We have not found a published timetable for any year, so ask your hotel or check local news the day before for the hour. Our Chinar Bagh guide describes the park and memorial on an ordinary day.

What it means if you are in Gilgit that day

• Closures. Government offices and banks are shut for the public holiday, so do any banking or paperwork the day before. Bazaar shops and restaurants are private businesses and generally trade.
• Roads. Expect checkpoints and closed roads around Chinar Bagh and the bridges near it on the morning of the ceremony, more so when a president or prime minister attends. Walk rather than drive in the centre.
• Getting in. We found no published rules on public entry to the ceremony. It is a state event with senior officials present, so carry your CNIC, expect to be searched, and accept it if police keep the public back.
• Transport. The holiday does not stop flights or buses, but allow extra time to cross the centre of town during VIP movement.

It is a calm day. Nothing about it should change a travel plan beyond leaving the morning free.

Is it worth planning a trip around?

Not for most people. Early November is late in the season: Hunza's autumn colour is fading, nights in Gilgit are cold, and the Babusar Pass is normally shut by snow, which leaves the Karakoram Highway or a flight as the ways in. The UK government advises against all travel on the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas, so foreign passport holders should check their own advice, since it can void travel insurance. Our Gilgit weather by month guide has what to expect.

If you are already in the region, it is a good morning to spend in Gilgit, and it pairs naturally with a walk through the old town in our places to visit in Gilgit city guide. For the wider area, see our guide to Gilgit and Hunza, and for other dates worth knowing, the festivals of Gilgit-Baltistan.

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