On August 3, 2025, former Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) AJK President Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi was arrested in Samahni, Karachi, police confirmed. The arrest occurred as Niazi arrived to address a PTI rally, based on warrants issued for a case linked to the May 9, 2023, riots following Imran Khan’s arrest.
According to Mirpur Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Liaquat Chaudhry, Niazi was detained under Section 16 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance, 1960, on orders from the deputy commissioner. The riots involved protests against Khan’s detention at the Islamabad High Court, leading to vandalism of military installations and public buildings.
بھمبر ریاستی جبر، پولیس کی نفری، بند راستے سب ناکام ہو گئے! میں عوام کے درمیان موجود ہوں، کیونکہ ہم حق پر ہیں، اور حق کو روکا نہیں جا سکتا۔
راستے بند تھےلیکن نیت مضبوط تھی۔ میں پہنچ گیا، کیونکہ "سفیر کشمیر" کی آواز دبائی نہیں جا سکتی۔ یہ تحریک رکے گی نہیں، بڑھے گی pic.twitter.com/TrcwbqsOHV
— Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi (@AQayyumNiaziPTI) August 3, 2025In a related development, a special anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Faisalabad sentenced 108 PTI leaders and workers, including National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub, Senators Shibli Faraz and Zartaj Gul, and Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) chief MNA Sahibzada Hamid Raza, to 10 years in prison each for involvement in the May 9 violence at Civil Lines Police Station.
سماہنی کے قریب سینکڑوں کارکنوں میں سے پولیس سردار عبد القیوم نیازی کو اٹھا کر لے گئی۔
کارکنان کو مزاحمت کرنی چاہئے تھی pic.twitter.com/f6wycKGAHN
— Ahmad Hassan Bobak (@ahmad__bobak) August 3, 2025The court acquitted former PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry, Zain Qureshi, and Khayal Kastro in the same case. In a second Civil Lines case, 28 of 32 accused were sentenced, with four acquitted, including Chaudhry, Qureshi, and Kastro. A Ghulam Muhammadabad Police Station case saw 60 sentences and seven acquittals, with Junaid Afzal Sahi receiving a three-year term.
Imran Khan, PTI founder and former prime minister, was ousted in April 2022 via a no-confidence motion and has been imprisoned since August 2023 on charges ranging from corruption to terrorism. The May 9 riots erupted after his arrest in a graft case, leading to widespread protests and arrests. Many PTI members have been released on bail, but others remain detained.
