Terrorism case registered against Imran Khan’s sisters, 400 others

• Case also invokes Section 120 of Pakistan Penal Code. 
• 14 suspects present before ATC in Rawalpindi today.
• Aliya Hamza and Salman Akram also named in FIR.
  

RAWALPINDI: Police on Wednesday registered a case against the sisters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and around 400 others under terrorism and other charges, following a last night sit-in outside the Adiala jail in Rawalpindi.

A first information report (FIR) has been registered against Aleema Khan, Noreen Niazi, Qasim Khan, Aliya Hamza, Salman Akram Raja, Naeem Panjotha, Allama Raja Nasir Abbas and others, under provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act at Police Station Saddar Beroni.

Last night, Khan’s sisters, along with hundreds of PTI supporters, staged a sit-in outside the prison after the authorities stopped them from meeting the former prime minister.

The case also invokes Section 120 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) for allegedly planning a criminal conspiracy against the state, attacking police personnel and violating Section 144.

Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023, faces multiple cases ranging from corruption to terrorism since his ouster from power via the opposition’s no-trust motion in April 2022.

14 suspects were arrested on the spot last night, the police said, adding that the suspects were presented before an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi today.

“The suspects raised slogans against the government, the state and blocked the road,” read the FIR.

The suspects invoked the other PTI workers and interfered in the official duties of the police personnel, it added.

The suspects also pelted stones and threw glass bottles at the police, read the FIR.

Imran, the ousted prime minister, has been behind bars for more than two years. His incarceration, however, has consistently proved to be a flashpoint with the government as PTI protests, including scuffles with police and jail staff, continue over meetings with the ex-PM.

Last week, the police forcefully ended an hours-long sit-in staged by Imran’s sisters outside the Adiala facility in an attempt to meet their incarcerated brother with the police saying that the official meeting hours had ended.

In November, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi staged a 16-hour sit-in outside the facility.

The last meeting with the jailed ex-PM was held on December 2 where his sister Uzma was allowed to meet him after the former ruling party raised concerns for his health and even threatened to hold a protest outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and then march towards the jail.

Amid all this, the government, Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry and adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah, hinted at transferring Imran to any other prison.