Former Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Regional President, Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi, was arrested by Mirpur police on Sunday for allegedly disturbing public order, triggering widespread protests by PTI supporters across the region.
Niazi was taken into custody near the shrine of Baba Shadi Shaheed in Bhimber district while returning from Samahni to Bhimber city. He was en route to lead a rally as part of PTI’s mobilisation drive for the August 5 protests, announced by the party’s jailed founder, Imran Khan.
Anticipating his arrest, Niazi had discreetly left his Mirpur accommodation Saturday night through a back exit and used a different vehicle to travel to Samahni. From there, he led a rally between Pir Galli and Samahni from 2 PM to 4 PM, urging the public to join demonstrations against Imran Khan’s imprisonment and India’s 2019 revocation of occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.
According to his press secretary, Habib Ahmed, a police convoy led by SSP Mirpur Khurram Iqbal intercepted Niazi’s entourage and detained him.
Niazi was previously booked alongside other PTI leaders—including former President Dr Arif Alvi—on November 24, 2023, at Islamabad’s Karachi Company police station under multiple sections of the Pakistan Penal Code, the Anti-Terrorism Act, and public order laws. His nephew, Advocate Sardar Moteeb, stated that Niazi had obtained protective bail from the Islamabad High Court, valid until August 17.
“Despite the bail, fresh arrest warrants were issued by Islamabad police based on additional charges,” Moteeb said.
Eyewitnesses reported the presence of around 20 plainclothes officers, believed to be from Islamabad police, in the arresting team alongside AJK officials. However, DIG Mirpur Region Dr Liaqat Ali clarified that Niazi was detained under Section 16 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) on orders from the Mirpur deputy commissioner.
Due to health concerns, Niazi is currently being held at the Industrial Area rest house in Mirpur, officially declared a sub-jail.
The DIG denied reports that two PTI workers accompanying Niazi were also detained.
Following his arrest, PTI supporters launched protests in several towns, blocking roads and setting tyres ablaze.
From the United States, PTI regional information secretary and former minister Chaudhry Maqbool Gujjar condemned the arrest as unjustified and politically motivated. He accused current AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq of betrayal.
“Anwarul Haq re-entered the AJK Assembly after a decade thanks to PTI’s platform and Imran Khan’s personal support. It’s disgraceful that he’s now targeting party workers calling for Khan Sahib’s release,” Gujjar said.
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