LHC orders police to recover ‘missing’ YouTuber Aun Ali by Aug 20

Published August 16, 2024
Video blogger Aun Ali Khosa.—Photo courtesy Aun’s X account
Video blogger Aun Ali Khosa.—Photo courtesy Aun’s X account

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday ordered the Lahore police to recover YouTuber Aun Ali Khosa, who was allegedly “taken into custody by some unknown armed men”, by August 20.

A day ago, Aun’s wife Binish Iqbal filed a petition in the LHC, a copy of which is seen by Dawn.com, claiming that her husband was “in the unlawful and illegal custody of the law enforcement authorities”.

Iqbal stated that the whereabouts of Aun were unknown and she feared for his “safety having strong apprehension that his husband has been a victim of enforced disappearance.”

Justice Shahbaz Ali Rizvi heard the petition today and ordered the Lahore capital city police officer (CCPO) to produce the “abducted” artist in the court on August 20.

Meanwhile, Lahore Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Operations Faisal Kamran has said that the police had not received any complaint about the alleged abduction of Aun, adding that the police would investigate the matter after receiving any complaint.

The petition

According to the petition, Aun was a “digital content creator, a writer, and a dignified comedian/artist having a massive following of 137,000 subscribers on YouTube”.

It claimed that at 2am on August 15, a dozen police officials and “men with masked faces in plain clothes” barged into his apartment after breaking apart the entrance door.

The heavily armed men confiscated Aun’s phone, laptop, computer system, and digital camera, the petition further detailed.

“The petitioner followed them as they left in a Fortuner and a Black Revo double cabin vehicle. After manhandling him and shoving him into the Black Vigo parked outside the flat, they fled,” the petition alleged.

It added that the petitioner repeatedly asked the men the reason for picking him up but they refused to provide any information and left.

Appeal to spread the word

Taking to platform X on August 15, the artist’s brother, Ali Sher Khosa, said Aun had been “taken into custody by some unknown armed men from his flat in Lahore”.

He asked people to pray for Aun’s recovery while also requesting everyone to spread the word.

In a post on X today, Khosa rebuffed reports that his family was “receiving threats”.

“This is fake news! Please stop spreading it. We have not received any threat calls from anyone,” he said.

Rights activist, group condemn incident

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that it was alarmed by reports that the digital content creator was “abducted” allegedly by unknown armed men from his home in Lahore.

HRCP said it was concerned that the incident may be related to his work as a satirist and called for his immediate recovery.

Activist and lawyer Jibran Nasir, in a satirical post on X, said that the “abduction” of the video blogger was “proof” that people’s laughter could also bring “instability” to the country.

“For stability, it is important that the people remain quiet, do not question and silently tolerate fascism,” Nasir said.

“No need to use your brain. The state will tell when to be happy, when to laugh, when to cry,” he added.

Opinion

From hard to harder

From hard to harder

Instead of ‘hard state’ turning even harder, citizens deserve a state that goes soft on them in delivering democratic and development aspirations.

Editorial

Canal unrest
Updated 03 Apr, 2025

Canal unrest

With rising water scarcity in Indus system, it is crucial to move towards a consensus-driven policymaking process.
Iran-US tension
03 Apr, 2025

Iran-US tension

THE Trump administration’s threats aimed at Iran do not bode well for global peace, and unless Washington changes...
Flights to history
03 Apr, 2025

Flights to history

MOHENJODARO could have been the forgotten gold we desperately need. Instead, this 5,000-year-old well of antiquity ...
Eid amidst crises
Updated 31 Mar, 2025

Eid amidst crises

Until the Muslim world takes practical steps to end these atrocities, these besieged populations will see no joy.
Women’s rights
Updated 01 Apr, 2025

Women’s rights

Such judgements, and others directly impacting women’s rights should be given more airtime in media.
Not helping
Updated 02 Apr, 2025

Not helping

If it's committed to peace in Balochistan, the state must draw a line between militancy and legitimate protest.