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A Pakistani court has granted Noreen Niazi a week-long protective bail in a cyber case over her remarks on the May conflict with India. The order blocks her arrest for now and adds to claims that the case is politically driven.
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Lahore,UPDATED: Jul 30, 2026 15:34 IST
A Pakistani court on Thursday granted a week-long protective bail to Noreen Niazi, the sister of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, in a case filed over her comments on the four-day conflict with India in May 2025. The case was registered by the Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) two days earlier over allegations that she belittled Pakistan's armed forces.
The Lahore High Court also restrained the NCCIA from arresting Niazi during the bail period and asked her to approach the relevant court within a week for further relief. Her lawyer told the court that the agency wanted to arrest her before she could secure interim bail from the competent court and said the case had been filed on political grounds.
According to a court official, Lahore High Court Justice Sardar Akbar Ali heard Niazi's plea for protective bail and directed her to seek further legal remedy before the appropriate court within the stipulated time. "Lahore High Court (LHC) Justice Sardar Akbar Ali heard Ms Niazi's petition seeking protective bail on Thursday and restrained the Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) from arresting her during the bail period and directed her to approach the relevant court within one week for further legal relief," the official told PTI.
The NCCIA registered a first information report against Niazi on Tuesday. The FIR said she had levelled "false" allegations against Pakistan and its armed forces. "Noreen Niazi attempted to undermine public confidence in the state and create panic among the people. She disseminated false, provocative, insulting and threatening content and conducted a systematic propaganda campaign against state and security institutions," it said.
On July 18, the agency issued her summons, accusing her of sharing "false, offensive and inflammatory" content on social media to defame state institutions and spread "fake narratives". She was later questioned at the agency's Islamabad office.
In an interview circulated widely on social media earlier this month, Niazi claimed that the India-Pakistan military confrontation in May 2025 was the result of collusion between Pakistan's military leadership and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was orchestrated to improve the image of the armed forces. The report said she sought to belittle the Pakistani military's response to India in the conflict, which followed the Pahalgam terror attack.
She also claimed, without giving evidence, that India chose not to escalate the conflict because Pakistan was moving towards recognising Israel and that the episode was aimed at helping Islamabad enter the Abraham Accords. Pakistan does not recognise Israel and has no diplomatic relations with it. The Abraham Accords are a set of agreements brokered by the US in 2020 that established diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and several Arab countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco.
"What do you think? ... India, which is a big country, was not in position to respond to Pakistan when it attacked on May 10?" Niazi said in the interview. "It could have but India deliberately refrained from giving a strong response because of some understanding." For now, the court has given her one week of protection from arrest while she seeks further relief in the case.
With PTI Inputs
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Published By:
India Today Web Desk
Published On:
Jul 30, 2026 15:34 IST
