A disturbing display of state force unfolded late Tuesday night outside Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, laying bare the extent of Pakistan’s deteriorating law-and-order situation under an increasingly authoritarian regime. The sisters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan accused the Punjab Police of manhandling them, dragging them on the road and assaulting them during a peaceful protest. The incident has intensified concerns about collapsing democratic norms and the growing militarisation of civilian institutions.
According to information accessed, Imran Khan’s sisters Noreen Khanum Niazi, Aleema Khanum and Dr Uzma Khanum had been holding a peaceful sit-in outside Adiala Jail since 10 AM, demanding their basic constitutional right to meet their imprisoned brother. For nearly three weeks, the Pakistani government, acting under pressure from the military establishment, has blocked family meetings with Khan, prompting the protest.
By midnight, however, Pakistan’s notorious police force, long criticised for political vendetta operations, moved in to forcibly disperse the women. The sisters alleged that female officers dragged them on the road, pulled off their headscarves and assaulted them, an act that once again highlighted the regime’s willingness to silence dissent. Videos posted on X by PTI leaders show a visibly shaken Noreen Khanum Niazi, while Aleema Khanum can be seen recounting the assault in detail.
PTI Workers Gather At Site
Following the incident, PTI workers gathered at the site. Pakistan Senate member Allama Raja Nasir delivered a sharp condemnation of the government, saying the treatment meted out to Imran Khan’s sisters was something “even Kafirs would not do,” describing the state’s behaviour as “Yazidi,” in a direct rebuke of what he called the regime’s moral collapse.
Around 12:30 AM (IST), police detained all three sisters and transported them to Chakri Police Station. Their swift detention and rapid release only strengthened claims that Pakistan’s police now function less as a civilian force and more as a coercive tool of the establishment.
The crackdown also extended to the media. Pakistani journalist Harmit Singh, who was covering the protest, posted a video showing officers shoving, pushing and beating him simply for reporting the incident, adding to the growing evidence of a near-total breakdown of press freedom in Pakistan, where journalists are routinely targeted for covering stories that inconvenience those in power.
Imprisoned since August 2023, Imran Khan has been issuing weekly messages through his sisters, sharply criticising what PTI calls the failures and corruption of Pakistan’s Field Marshal General Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. According to PTI, these statements infuriated the establishment, leading to the calculated decision to block family visits for three weeks.
The events outside Adiala Jail stand as yet another reminder of how Pakistan’s government and security apparatus under Asim Munir and Shehbaz Sharif are sliding deeper into authoritarianism, cracking down on political opponents, suppressing peaceful protests, and unleashing force against women, journalists and anyone who challenges the regime.