Category: 1. Pakistan

• Aleema Khan claims PTI founder to lead the protest from jail.
• Claims 26 PTI Punjab MPAs suspended to “Maryam Nawaz”.
• Khan not allowed to see personal physician for 10 months: Noreen.
  

Incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan wants his party’s anti-government protest to “hit peak” on August 5 — the day when he completes two years in jail — his sister Aleema Khan said on Tuesday.

The jailed PTI patron-in-chief had directed that the party should begin its movement against the government after the 10th of Muharram, Aleema quoted his orders last week.

“Muharram 10 has passed […] the party will unveil its strategy now,” said Aleema while talking to journalists at Gorakhpur check post after she along with Noreen Niazi and Uzma Khan met the ex-premier at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.

The PTI founder would lead the protest from jail, she claimed, and launched a criticism against the party leadership, quoting Khan as saying that he was free in prison while they are imprisoned outside.

“Our family knows about the protest plan,” said Aleema, however, she remained tight-lipped about the details of the upcoming demonstration. She added that they would inform the media regarding the plan at an appropriate time.

The protest route — whether it starts from Peshawar and proceeds to Lahore — will be decided and disclosed by the party, she added.

She also said that Khan’s entire family would participate in the upcoming protest. Khan had conveyed that those unable to carry the burden of the political movement should step aside, she added.

Reacting to the suspension of 26 PTI lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly, Aleema alleged that the suspension was made to “appease [Punjab Chief Minister] Maryam Nawaz.”

Khan’s another sister, Noreen Niazi, told reporters that he was in good health, but the jail authorities denied access of television, newspapers and reading material to the former premier for the past one week.

Aleema alleged that the PTI founder and his wife Bushra were kept in solitary confinement, adding that Khan has not been allowed to see his personal physician for 10 months.

She also blamed the Punjab chief minister for her involvement in imposing restrictive measures on ex-premier Khan in jail.

CM Gandapur to lead protest

Last week, PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram said his party first postponed the nationwide protests due to the Iran-Israel war, then it delayed it out of respect for Muharram days.

In the first phase, demonstrations would be held in provinces and districts, the PTI spokesperson said.

To a query, he said the party workers should not be exposed to live bullets. “When the first bullet was fired, the PTI founder won,” he said.

To another query pertaining to KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur’s statement that he would carry weapons to the protest, Akram said Gandapur was talking about self-defence. “What the chief minister meant was that everybody has the right to self-defence,” he added.

The PTI spokesperson also said the PTI founder had directed Gandapur to lead the protest.

Former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have filed an application with the Islamabad High Court (IHC) requesting an expedited hearing for their pleas to suspend their convictions in the £190 million case.

Earlier this year, Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were convicted in the £190 million case. Imran Khan was sentenced to 14 years in prison, while Bushra Bibi received a seven-year jail term. Accountability Court Judge Nasir Javed Rana announced the order in a courtroom inside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail.

In addition to the prison sentences, the court imposed fines of Rs1 million on Imran and Rs500,000 on Bushra. If the fines are not paid, Imran Khan will serve an additional six months in prison, and Bushra Bibi will face an extra three months.

The verdict also declared that the property of the “sham trust,” Al-Qadir University Project Trust, is to be forfeited to the Federal Government in accordance with Section 10(a) of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999.

According to documents available to Express Tribune, the petitions were filed through Barrister Salman Safdar on Tuesday, urging the court to schedule a hearing “without any further delay, as the petitions involve the fundamental issues of liberty and freedom.”

The petition further highlights that the announcement of the judgment has been delayed three times, raising concerns about the fairness and transparency of the judicial process.

The petition states, “The appeal against the conviction was duly filed on 27.01.2025. However, the Registrar’s Office raised objections, which were later removed, causing unnecessary delays.”

Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi expressed concerns over repeated delays caused by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which has sought adjournments in the case. Despite assurances from the court, the suspension of sentences has not yet been reviewed.

Read: Imran, Bushra convicted in £190m case

“NAB has repeatedly sought adjournments on the pretext of engaging special prosecutors in this matter,” the petition says.

The petition points out that the case had already been scheduled for hearings four times. However, despite assurances to the counsel that a short adjournment would be given and a proper date would be set to decide the suspension petitions, no date has been provided yet.

It further notes that the Special Prosecutor appeared at the next hearing but again sought additional time. “The applicant is facing repeated prosecutions, and in two cases, he has already been acquitted, while in the Toshakhana case, this Honourable Court suspended his sentence with the consent of the prosecutor,” the petition adds.

The plea argues that, given the urgency of the matter and the nature of the relief sought, there should be no legal or procedural barriers preventing the scheduling of the application for sentence suspension. This application directly concerns the fundamental right to liberty, guaranteed under the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973.

The petition further states that the right to be treated according to the law is a fundamental right under Article 4 of the Constitution of Pakistan, which is being denied to the applicants due to unjust delays.

Also Read: Imran, wife move IHC for bail in £190m case

Liberty, guaranteed under Article 9, is also being violated as the request for sentence suspension continues to be unduly delayed. Despite judicial policy prioritising bail and suspension applications, the applicants’ case is being deprioritised without legal justification.

What is the £190 million case?

The case alleges that Imran Khan and others involved adjusted Rs50 billion—equivalent to £190 million at the time—that was transferred by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the Pakistani government.

As PM, Imran Khan obtained cabinet approval for this settlement on December 3, 2019, without disclosing the confidential details of the agreement. The arrangement had stipulated that the funds would be submitted to the Supreme Court.

According to NAB officials, Imran and his wife received land worth billions of rupees intended for the construction of an educational institute.

NAB filed the reference on December 1, 2023 against eight accused persons including Imran and his wife. The court on January 6, 2024 declared the rest of six accused proclaimed offenders as they did not face the trial and escaped to foreign countries.

The court indicted Imran and Bushra on February 27, 2024. The prosecution presented 35 witnesses, whom the defense later cross-examined.

Read More: Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi indicted in Toshakhana 2.0 case

Key witnesses in the case included PM’s former principal secretary Azam Khan, former defense minister Pervez Khattak and former federal minister Zubaida Jalal.

Three different judges presided over the case at various stages of the trial while the final investigative officer, Mian Umar Nadeem, was cross-examined after 38 hearings.

The accountability court provided the accused 15 opportunities to complete their statements under Section 342. However, no witnesses were presented by the defence.

Pakistan appointed on Tuesday Qatari Princess Sheikha Asma Al Thani as the brand ambassador for its Mountains and Tourism. The announcement follows her achievement of scaling Nanga Parbat, one of the highest and most challenging peaks in the world.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took to X to congratulate the princess and laud her feat. 

Read: Czech climber dies on ‘killer mountain’

Earlier, Sheikha Asma posted on Instagram, “My ninth 8000er and one of the toughest climbs I’ve faced. This mountain tested me in ways I didn’t expect, from black ice beneath my feet to rockfall every few seconds”.

Sheikha Asma is the first Qatari woman to summit Mount Everest, Lhotse, Manaslu, and K2, as well as the first Qatari female to climb Ama Dablam. 

She is also the first Qatari person to ski to the North Pole.

On her ascent of Manaslu, she became the first Arab person to summit an eight-thousander without supplemental oxygen. She achieved another milestone in May 2024 by climbing Lhotse for the second time, also without supplemental oxygen, making her the first Arab to climb two 8000ers without using oxygen.

• Children taken to DHQ Hospital Hattian Bala, THQ Hospital Chikar.
• Van driver, two children in critical condition: SP Mirza Zahid.
• Accident occurs near Chikar hill station in Neelum Valley.
  

MUZAFFARABAD: At least 25 schoolchildren and a driver sustained injuries after a van fell into a gorge near Chikar hill station in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s (AJK) Neelum Valley.

The AJK police said that the injured children and van driver were shifted to the hospital. According to the Superintendent Police (SP) Mirza Zahid, the van driver and two children are in critical condition.

The affected children were taken to the DHQ Hospital Hattian Bala and Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) Hospital Chikar.

Road accidents are common in the country’s mountainous regions, largely due to poor driving skills, lack of safety measures, challenging terrain, and derelict road infrastructure.

Buses and trucks are normally filled beyond their capacities with passengers which also cause vehicles to overturn.

In May, five policemen including Assistant Director Zakir Awan and IG’s Reader Ali Bukhari died in a horrific accident after their car fell into a ravine in Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s Dhirkot tehsil.

The incident took place in Lasdana, a tourist destination in AJK’s Bagh district, in which five cops lost their lives. Policemen Fahim, SHO Naveed and Inspector Yasir Kiani were also among the deceased, according to Bagh deputy commissioner.

According to official statistics, traffic accidents in Pakistan dropped by over 33% in 2024 if compared with 2023.

A total of 6,233 traffic accidents took place countrywide in 2024 among which 4,231 were fatal traffic accidents. In 2023, a total number of 9,333 road accidents took place across the country among which 3,820 were fatal traffic accidents.

In Azad Jammu Kashmir, 409 road accidents were reported among which 111 were fatal accidents and 298 were non-fatal accidents. In 2023, AJK reported a total of 391 road accidents where 115 were fatal and 276 were non-fatal accidents.

An Islamabad court ordered the blocking of 27 YouTube channels for allegedly airing anti-state content and spreading “false, misleading and fake” information, it emerged on Tuesday.

The federal government established the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) to probe illegal activities on social med­ia. The NCCIA, operating under the Interior Divi­sion, has a key role in combatting cybercrime in Pakistan.

Sub-Inspector (SI) Waseem Khan of the NCCIA’s Cyber Crime Circle informed the Islamabad judicial magistrate on June 24 that under Section 37 (unlawful online content) of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, the department was conducting an inquiry regarding 27 “Youtube channels who are involved in disseminating and propagating fake and misleading information against the state Institutions which is likely to cause fear, panic, disorder or unrest in the general public or society along with defamatory and fake remarks/information, which violates the privacy and harms the dignity of the officials of state institutions”.

Among the 27 channels are those of the PTI, journalists Matiuallah Jan, Wajahat Khan, Ahmad Noorani and Asad Ali Toor; former anchors Imran Riaz, Orya Maqbool, Sabir Shakir, and Moeed Pirzada .

He further said that the YouTube channels were “found involved in sharing highly intimidating, provocative and derogatory contents against state institutions and officials of state of Pakistan” and were a “source of publicly disseminating/propagating false, misleading and fake information against the state institutions/officials”.

He said that through their channels, the suspects had “attempted to provoke the general public and armed forces personnel by trying to create a feeling of ill-will among pillars of the state”.

SI Khan had requested the court to issue a warrant/subpoena to Google to remove/block the 27 YouTube channels.

Judicial Magistrate Muhammad Abbas Shah’s June 24 order, available with Dawn.com, said he had heard the inquiry officer (IO) and examined the record on file.

“In the light of facts explained and evidence presented by the IO, this court is convinced that the subject matter constitutes offences punishable under the Peca and penal laws of Pakistan.”

He ordered the “head officer in charge of the security department/custodian of records” to Google block/remove the 27 YouTube channels.

Earlier today, Toor said he had received a notice from YouTube, informing him about the legal request received to remove his channel. “You may choose to act on the said content in terms of the aforesaid court order. If you fail to do so, as per our local law obligations, we may comply with the request without further notice to you,” the notice said.

Farhan Mallick, the founder of media agency Raftar and a former news director at Samaa TV, was arrested on March 20 in Karachi and booked under Peca as well as the Pakistan Penal Code in a case related to alleged anti-state content on his YouTube channel.

The arrest was met with widespread criticism from media bodies as well as rights activists.

He was granted bail in April in the many cases against him pertaining to allegedly “anti-state” content and data theft through a call centre.

Aleema Khan, sister of imprisoned PTI founder Imran Khan, Tuesday stated that the party will unveil its protest plan after 10th Muharram, adding that the strategy has already been devised by the former Prime Minister himself, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Speaking to the media at Gorakhpur checkpoint, Aleema said, “The founder has made the plan. Our family discussed it during a meeting last week, and when the time comes, we will share it with the media.” She said the PTI’s protest movement is being carefully timed and managed, and not dictated by media demands.

“Whether we start from Peshawar or go to Lahore, the party will announce it,” she said, urging the public to “trust us, it will be better.”

She also stated that Imran Khan will lead the protest movement from jail, and that he considers himself “free behind bars”, while those outside are “the real prisoners.”

Aleema urged citizens to “come out for themselves – for democracy, rule of law, and against the 26th Amendment,” signaling PTI’s growing resistance to the political order under the current government.

Aleema also accused the ruling PML-N of suppressing dissent to appease Maryam Nawaz, saying, “We are being stopped to fulfill Maryam Nawaz’s desires. They suspended 26 members just to please her. But we are not in her control.”

Meanwhile, Noreen Niazi, another sister of the PTI founder, shared details after meeting Imran Khan in jail.

“Thank God the meeting happened. He is physically fine, but mentally being isolated,” she said.

She alleged that Imran Khan has been denied access to newspapers and TV for a week, adding, “He has nothing to read or write. What’s happening to him isn’t done to any prisoner.”

 Reporter: Irshad Qureshi