LHC Requests Report on Aleema Khan's Detention Under 3-MPO

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday requested a report from the relevant authorities concerning the detention of Aleema Khan, who is the sister of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan. The request was made during a hearing of a petition filed against Aleema Khan’s detention.

Aleema Khan was detained by the police under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order, 1960 (3-MPO) on 20 September in Lahore and subsequently transferred to Kot Lakhpat jail. The day after her detention, her sisters Noreen Niazi and Uzma Khan were also detained under the same law, following a recommendation from the police.

These detentions took place ahead of PTI’s nationwide protest plans, including a long march on Islamabad set for 27 September to call for Imran Khan’s release and the upholding of the Constitution.

A petition against Aleema Khan's detention was filed by her son, who also challenged the detention of her driver. During Friday’s hearing, lawyer Rana Mudassir argued that the detention order was unlawful. He further stated that Aleema Khan was not being allowed medicine or clothes in jail, and requested the court to direct authorities to provide these items. Justice Abhar Gul Khan noted that the issue of medicine and clothes should be addressed through a separate application.

A separate petition was subsequently filed, seeking that medicine, clothes, and access for Aleema Khan’s family and lawyers be allowed. The Punjab Home Department and other officials were named as respondents in this plea.

Previously, the court had issued notices to the Punjab government and other respondents on petitions challenging the detention of Noreen Niazi and Uzma Khan under 3-MPO. However, the court did not suspend the detention notifications at this stage, instead calling for comments from the respondents.