Rawalpindi, April 17, 2025: Several senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and the sisters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan were released on Thursday evening after being briefly detained by Rawalpindi police near Adiala Jail.
Among those detained were National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub Khan, Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) chief Sahibzada Hamid Raza, and Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Ahmed Khan Bhachar. They were reportedly attempting to meet Imran Khan, who remains imprisoned at Adiala Jail, when the altercation occurred.
Imran Khan’s sisters—Aleema Khan, Noreen Khanum, and Uzma Khanum—were also taken into custody, along with his cousin Qasim Khan. In total, seven PTI leaders and family members were briefly detained and transported in a prison van.
Police officials claimed the arrests were made after presenting warrants. “We will arrest you all,” one officer was heard saying during the confrontation, as captured by local media.
Before being escorted into the prison van, Omar Ayub addressed reporters, stating, “See this, they are arresting the Leader of the Opposition […] along with Punjab’s opposition leader, Hamid Raza, and others.” He further accused the government of suppressing the opposition and referred to an incident in which he prevented Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi from taking his seat in the National Assembly.
“There is always rule of law in a hard state,” Ayub added. “Our ancestors made sacrifices for this nation.”
All detained individuals were released shortly after and no formal charges were announced at the time of reporting.
