The top leadership of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Chief Hamid Raza were briefly detained by Punjab police on Monday for allegedly violating Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). Among those taken into custody were PTI leaders Omar Ayub and MNA Asad Qaiser, who were awaiting a court-approved meeting with PTI founder Imran Khan outside Adiala Jail.
Police stated that the leaders were arrested due to restrictions under Section 144, recently imposed in Rawalpindi ahead of anticipated rallies. Although PTI’s Aliya Hamza Malik was part of the delegation, she was not detained, having stood far from her colleagues.
Ahead of his arrest, Ayub, the Opposition Leader in the National Assembly, told reporters that the visit was to discuss party strategy with Imran Khan. Shibli Faraz, the PTI Opposition Leader in the Senate, also mentioned plans to coordinate the party’s response to upcoming protests.
This incident follows a pattern of PTI leader detentions amid heightened political tensions, as the opposition’s calls for Khan's release and judicial independence continue. Meanwhile, an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi issued an arrest warrant for PTI’s Sheikh Waqas Akram over charges related to cases in the Attock district.
