Aleema detained under MPO in Lahore ahead of PTI's Sept 27 protest

Aleema detained under MPO in Lahore ahead of PTI's Sept 27 protest.

Key points

• Asif ChaudhryAhmed Faraz KhanNews Desk Published September 20, 2026 Updated September 21, 2026 01: 31am.
• He recalled previous protests by PTI that had turned violent, such as the May 9 riots of 2023 and the Nov 26, 2024 clashes in Islamabad.
• Afterwards in the day, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram maintained that MNAs Sanaullah Mastikhel, Ahsan Jamal Khan and Mian Ghous had been taken into custody.
• Akbar's clarification came after administration representatives, including Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, criticised his comments.
• After the arrest, Aleema's sister Noreen Niazi addressed a press conference in Lahore, flanked by her sister's counsel Advocate Mudassir Umar.

Asif ChaudhryAhmed Faraz KhanNews Desk Published September 20, 2026 Updated September 21, 2026 01: 31am. Join our Whatsapp Channel. Add Dawn as a trusted source.

After the office of Lahore's deputy commissioner (DC) ordered her detention or arrest for 30 days, PTI remarked on Sunday that ex-prime minister and party founder Imran Khan's sister, Aleema Khan, had been detained by authorities.

In practice, the development takes place against the backdrop of reports of a crackdown on the PTI ahead of its September 27 countrywide protest and march to Islamabad. It the party has called to demand Imran's release from jail and mobilise residents for the supremacy of the Constitution.

For context, the September 20 order, a copy of which is available with Dawn, remarked DC Muhammad Ali Ijaz had ordered the detention or arrest of Aleema and a man named Muhammad Ameer under the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960 (MPO).

Notably, the MPO ordinance allows the authorities to order detention and restrict judicial review of such orders.

"Their custody shall be placed under the superintendent, Central Jail, Kot Lakhpat, Lahore. They shall be at liberty to create a representation to the provincial administration against this order, " the document read.

Police sources confirmed to Dawn that Aleema had been taken to the Kot Lakhpat jail.

Noreen asserted Aleema was "picked up" along with her driver after she left her residence on Saturday and they afterwards learnt that Aleema's vehicle was parked at a police station. Meanwhile, the lawyer remarked they had yet to receive official confirmation of her arrest.

Aleema's son Shahrez Khan, in a post on X, alleged his mother "was abducted after leaving home this morning".

"Our family has had no contact or news of her whereabouts, " he wrote, clarifying that Aleema was on bail in all cases against her in Lahore.

"We demand the government immediately disclose her whereabouts and ensure her safe return, " Shahrez wrote.

Notably, the DC's order cited a letter by the Lahore capital city police officer. It remarked the letter referred to police reports that stated Aleema and Ameer "are prejudicial to the public safety and maintenance of public order".

When PTI supporters and workers took to the streets against Imran's arrest, according to the order, the reports additionally mentioned that the two had been involved in roadblocks and protests on May 9, 2023.

"They motivated the workers to damage public and administration property. Moreover, they are again mobilising the workers through social media and public meetings to create law and order situation, raising/chanting objectionable slogans amongst the general public against the administration/institution so as to provoke and incite them, " the order read.

It remarked multiple cases had been registered against the two, declaring them "potential dangers to public peace and tranquillity".

According to the order, the Civil Lines Division superintendent of police and district intelligence branch in-charge recommended their detention under the MPO for a 30-day period "in order to keep the law and order situation in the city intact".

According to him, Jamal was detained "in front of the National Assembly".

In his X posts, Akram additionally stated that Noreen's daughter and son-in-law were published after brief detention in Lahore. Ministers slam MNA Junaid Akbar's remarks.

Meanwhile, PTI MNA Junaid Akbar defended his remarks regarding his party's upcoming march, wherein he remarked that they would turn Islamabad into Somnath, a historic Indian temple, and "would keep on lifting corpses and new people would also come".

For context, the PTI leader contended that his statements were given "a wrong spin" by certain journalists and individuals.

"We were peaceful, we are peaceful, and we will remain peaceful. I applied the reference to Somnath to indicate returning repeatedly, " he stated in a post on X.

"Whoever is not peaceful will not be a soldier of Imran Khan, " the lawmaker continued, urging party workers to "keep an eye on those people who try to harm the movement".

"Imran Khan has always said that this country is also mine, this army is also mine."

"Their language reveals just how Pakistani they are. And to what extremes they can go for the sake of seizing power. And what a lesson Imran Khan has taught them, " Asif remarked on X, referring to Akbar's remarks.

"These people were enemies of peace, progress, and Pakistan yesterday; they are so today; and they will remain so tomorrow as well, " the minister remarked.

Meanwhile, Tarar remarked: This indicates their intention to create chaos and destruction.

"Their call for protest is illegal and we will not allow them to block roads and disrupt people's lives."

Speaking to Geo News on Akbar's remarks, Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry cautioned that there would be no tolerance for "anything that was unlawful, a danger to people's lives or property, or that affected the routine life".

He recalled previous protests by PTI that had turned violent, such as the May 9 riots of 2023 and the Nov 26, 2024 clashes in Islamabad. The state minister asserted that rights guaranteed under the Constitution did not allow one to carry out an "attack".

"If you are a peaceful citizen, come to Islamabad we will definitely provide you protection and every kind of facility, but if you come as terrorists, then you will not return, " the PML-N leader remarked.

Describing the development as part of "pressure" ahead of the September 27 protest, Noreen remarked the date would be a "historic day" in what she described as a movement for Imran's release.

"We are all part of this movement, " she remarked to journalists, urging PTI supporters not to be afraid despite what she alleged was a crackdown involving raids on homes.

She called on individuals to come out "for their country and Imran Khan", alleging that his brother was being kept in custody unjustly and was not receiving proper medical treatment.

"If they think that by arresting Aleema Khan we will be frightened, they are mistaken, " she declared.

Advocate Umar observed an MPO(3) order had been circulating on social media and purportedly named Aleema and Ameer. Nevertheless, he stated, the administration had not yet officially acknowledged Aleema's detention.

"We are working out a legal course of action against the arrest. The administration should own the arrest so that we can seek legal remedy, " the lawyer stated.

In short, aleema detained under MPO in Lahore ahead of PTI' s Sept 27 protest is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.