Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi, sisters of Imran Khan, the incarcerated PTI founder, have been released from Kot Lakhpat jail after the Punjab government withdrew their extended detention orders.
Rana Mudassar Umer, a PTI legal counsel, confirmed the development on Thursday, writing in a post on X that the two women had returned home safely following their release.
They had been detained in September under Section 3 of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance (MPO) alongside their sister, Aleema Khan, as their party prepared for a protest march towards Islamabad, reported DAWN.
The detention was initially ordered for 30 days by the Lahore deputy commissioner. When challenged in the Lahore High Court after the initial period lapsed last month, the Punjab government informed the court that the detention had been extended for another 30 days.
Taimur Malik, a PTI lawyer, noted on X that the two women were freed upon the withdrawal of the “unlawful MPO detention order”, calling for all others detained under similar orders to be released as well. Aleema Khan, who was the first of the sisters to be detained, remains in jail.
Noreen Niazi’s son, Wali, also confirmed the release on X, disclosing that his mother, who is in her seventies, and his aunt had been held for 53 days without any formal charge or trial. He pointed out that two weeks prior, his mother was transferred to a cardiac hospital without her family being informed, and that they were let out today with no explanation provided.
Wali urged a judge to explain both decisions, emphasising that neither the jailing nor the release was grounded in law, describing both as arbitrary.
The release follows heightened concern over Noreen Niazi’s health after she was moved from Kot Lakhpat jail to the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) on 28 October due to high blood pressure. Her lawyer claimed at the time that no family member had been notified of her medical condition, leading PTI to condemn her transfer without family notification and express grave concern over her health and the treatment of political prisoners.
The government said she received proper medical attention and was fine. On 29 October, Rana Sanaullah, adviser to the prime minister on political affairs, informed the Senate that her medical tests were normal and her condition was fine.
