By Staff Reporter
RAWALPINDI: A court on Friday ordered the blocking of the national identity card and passport of Aleema Khan, the sister of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, after she failed to appear for a hearing in a case stemming from a chaotic antigovernment protest last year, despite the execution of a non-bailable arrest warrant against her.
The ruling by the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi, a garrison city near the capital, Islamabad, escalated the legal pressures on Aleema Khan, who has repeatedly evaded court appearances in connection with the November 2024 demonstration organised by her brother’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party.
The judge also directed the freezing of her bank accounts and the forfeiture of her guarantor’s properties to the state, adjourning the case until Oct. 27.The development underscores the ongoing fallout from the PTI’s defiant push into Islamabad last November, which pitted thousands of protesters against security forces in a day of violent clashes that highlighted the deepening political rift in Pakistan since Khan’s ouster in 2022.
Aleema Khan, a vocal supporter of her brother, who remains imprisoned on separate charges, has become a target in the government’s crackdown on the party’s leadership. During Friday’s hearing, Judge Amjad Ali Shah of the anti-terrorism court noted Aleema Khan’s conspicuous public presence amid her courtroom absences. “She is present everywhere but doesn’t appear before the court,” he observed. He added that her attendance would be ensured.
The judge then instructed the director general of the National Database and Registration Authority, which oversees identity documents, and the director general of passports to immediately block Aleema Khan’s national identity card and her passport. He further ordered the State Bank of Pakistan to freeze all of her bank accounts.
The case, widely referred to as the November 26 protest case, traces back to a massive PTI rally that drew more than 10,000 demonstrators into Islamabad, defying a government ban on public gatherings and a citywide lockdown. The protesters surged toward the capital’s heavily fortified Red Zone, clashing with some 20,000 security personnel deployed to repel them. The confrontations ended with the PTI leadership abruptly calling off the planned sit-in “for the time being,” as the party announced at the time.
In the aftermath, authorities filed cases against numerous PTI figures under sections of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, which addresses acts intended to create fear or insecurity. Aleema Khan, along with 10 others, was charged in a case registered at the Sadiqabad police station in Rawalpindi. Two additional cases were lodged at the Taxila police station, and one at the Naseerabad station.
The court has issued arrest warrants for Aleema Khan at least four times in this matter, reflecting her persistent nonappearance. On Oct. 8, the anti-terrorism court issued a bailable arrest warrant after she failed to show up for an indictment hearing. Six days later, on Oct. 14, the court escalated to a non-bailable warrant, citing her failure to appear twice. It rejected a plea from her counsel for an exemption from personal appearance, noting that she faced criminal charges linked to the November 26 protest. Another non-bailable warrant followed on Oct. 20, amid her continued absences. The most recent non-bailable warrant — the third in the series — was issued on Oct. 22.
During that hearing, the court also sent showcause notices to two police officers for submitting what it described as a “fabricated and misleading report” claiming Aleema Khan had gone into hiding. The judge pointed out that videos on social media showed her addressing the media outside Adiala Jail, where her brother is held, just the evening before. That warrant was executed on Thursday, when Punjab Sub-Divisional Police Officer Azhar Shah presented it before a bench of the Islamabad High Court and obtained Aleema Khan’s signature on the spot.
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