Imran's sister detained ahead of PTI protest

Authorities in Punjab's provincial capital on Sunday detained former prime minister Imran Khan's septuagenarian sister Aleema Khan for 30 days and transferred her to Lahore Kot Lakhpat Jail amid a protest by the PTI and other parties in an opposition alliance, the TTAP. The move occurred just a week before the PTI's planned protest march, scheduled to start on September 27, aimed at forcing the PML-N-led federal government to release Imran, the PTI founder, who has been detained in a Rawalpindi jail for over three years. On Sunday, Lahore Deputy Commissioner (DC) Muhammad Ali Ijaz issued an order stating that Aleema Khan and a PTI leader, Muhammad Ameer, had been ordered to be arrested and detained for 30 days under Section 3 of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960. The order stated that police and intelligence officials reported the two were involved in the May 9, 2023 protests and road blockades and allegedly motivated workers to damage public and government property. It also said they were mobilising workers through social media and public meetings, raising slogans that could provoke or incite people. The DC said the District Intelligence Committee endorsed the material provided by the police and unanimously recommended their detention. He said their presence at public places would pose a "grave threat to the public safety" and could lead to a breach of public peace and order. The detention order also stated that Aleema might make a representation against the detention to the provincial government. Aleema's son Shahrez Khan wrote on X that his mother was abducted after leaving home on Sunday morning, adding that the family had had no contact with her or information about her whereabouts. "She is on bail in all cases against her in Lahore. We demand the government immediately disclose her whereabouts and ensure her safe return," he added. Police also detained Hajra Niazi, Imran's niece, and her husband. According to sources, police officials stopped the couple at a checkpoint near Aleema's residence before taking them into custody. The sources said the couple were subsequently taken to different police stations and remained in police custody for some time before being released. Hajra Niazi is the daughter of Imran's sister Noreen Niazi and sister of incarcerated PTI worker and Imran's nephew Hassan Niazi Authorities in Islamabad also detained three PTI leaders from the federal capital's Red Zone near the Parliament Lodges on Sunday and later transferred them to an undisclosed location. These detentions came ahead of the PTI protest which Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Friday the government would do everything to stop. Opposition leaders strongly condemned the detention. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan decried Aleema's arrest, saying it was the first step toward worsening the situation. "Our march will be peaceful and political. We do not want any confrontation or violence," he said. Gohar called on the government to immediately stop such measures and release her. He added that the party would soon announce its course of action against such measures. The TTAP also strongly condemned Aleema's detention, terming it an escalation of the ongoing crackdown on political workers and their families. In a statement, the TTAP said the detention created an atmosphere of fear among political workers and their families. The statement further alleged that the Punjab government's actions against political workers aimed at disrupting political activity ahead of the September 27 protest. "The relentless crackdown on political workers in Punjab has now reached families. Aleema's detention under 3-MPO, with no charge and days before September 27, is repression at its peak. It will not break our resolve. Resisting it is our duty," said TTAP provincial leader Shayyan Bashir. Senate Leader of Opposition Raja Nasir Abbas also condemned the move, calling the detention of Imran Khan's sister "extremely regrettable and condemnable". He said peaceful political struggle and the right to expression could not be suppressed through arrests. PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi also criticised the detention, with Raja alleging that political workers were being arrested across Punjab ahead of the September 27 protest. Afridi described the detention as political victimisation and questioned the use of arrests against women in political disputes. PTI leader and a close aide to Imran, Zulfi Bukhari, described the arrest as "absolutely despicable" in a post on X, adding that "the fear of the 27th protest is clearly taking its toll". Meanwhile, the Human Rights Council of Pakistan also expressed concern over Aleema's detention.