A Pakistani investigative journalist named Ahmad Noorani (@Ahmad_Noorani) on March 19 alleged that Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) operatives abducted his two brothers from Islamabad. To save their lives, and afraid of the torture they may be given, his mother Ameena Bashir has now moved a writ petition in the Islamabad High Court through human rights lawyer Imaan Zainab Hazir (nee Mazari).
Ahmad Noorani defines himself as “A Journalist’’ in his X (Twitter) Bio and has been based in Washington (US) for the last five years. He runs a portal called FactFocusPak on which there are several explosive stories. A strap-line describing journalism practised by FactFocus says: Factual, data-driven investigative stories to empower Pakistani citizens. Regarding Tuesday as also Wednesday’s incidents his family had to endure, Noorani wrote on X.
Due to my reporting on Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir, the ISI and Islamabad Police raided my home in Islamabad just now and has tortured my two brothers in front of our mother.
Due to my reporting on Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir,https://t.co/7P8DZcclrY
the ISI and Islamabad Police raided my home in Islamabad just now and has tortured my two brothers in front of our mother.
I have been in the U.S. for the past five years, and my family has…
— Ahmad Noorani (@Ahmad_Noorani) March 18, 2025
Many of these stories were against high and mighty senior Pakistan Army officers of the past, including former Pak Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
In the past, he somehow managed to dodge the bullet, as they say, and his family still in Pakistan was not targeted. This time, however, his family in Islamabad had to bear the consequences of his actions taken in Washington a couple of days ago. Under the title “Army Chief or a King: GHQ Tightens Grip On Civilian Institutions Under General Asim Munir’’ (https://factfocus.com/humanrights/4326/), he published a report on Monday (March 17).
Within 24 hours of this report about alleged undue influence Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir has wielded on civilian institutions being published online, ISI operatives barged into his paternal house in Islambad. They then ransacked the place and beat up his two brothers even as his old mother watched in horror. The two brothers were then taken away by them to an undisclosed destination.
In the report on FactFocusPak, Noorani has written many details regarding General Asim Munir’s close relatives, two of his daughters, his close relative Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and some others. The report says that General Munir’s two daughters have been issued diplomatic passports in gross violation of rules. Noorani says that the daughters were married and not part of the household of General Munir any longer and there is no way they can be issued official passports.
In his report, which opens with “Unauthorised issuance of Diplomatic Passports to General Asim Munir’s family members’’ Noorani says: Pakistan, as a country, is supposed to be governed by laws and regulations, but has it become a kingdom ruled by the law of the jungle? This can be clearly observed by the fact that immediately after General Asim Munir’s appointment as Chief of Army Staff, his family members, some of whom were not even eligible for diplomatic passports, were granted these prestigious travel documents.
For instance, the married daughters of General Asim Munir, who were not part of his immediate family, were also issued diplomatic passports. These included Sundas Uzair, who is married to Uzair Ali Shan, and Khadija Asim, who is married to Syed Osama Bin Afzal. The Directorate General of Immigration & Passports confirmed to Fact Focus that these passports were indeed issued, and senior officials from the FIA confirmed that this was done in violation of established rules.
Not only this, the report gives details about several other relatives of General Munir who have risen swiftly to top positions, not because of their own merit or standing, but the power the Pakistan Army chief wields unconstitutionally on civilian institutions. For example, the report talks about Syed Babar Ali Shah, the maternal uncle of General Asim Munir, who has come back to Pakistan nowadays after staying in London for many years. The report says: Syed Babar Ali Shah, the army chief’s maternal uncle, has been an unannounced king of Islamabad since early 2023 and was instrumental in many key appointments, awards, and promotions including the appointment of the former DG (Director General) FIA (Federal Investigative Agency) Ahmad Ishaq Jahangir.
Regarding General Munir’s first cousin Hajra Sohail, the report by Noorani says: Another influential relative is the army chief’s first cousin, Hajra Sohail, who was an ordinary employee working as a scholarship manager in a federal government organization at the time of General Asim Munir’s appointment in November 2022. She was first appointed to a very senior position without any formal process and then, within months, promoted to Chief Executive Officer of the same organization.
Incidentally, Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief presently, is closely related to General Munir’s wife, Iram Asim. The report says that Naqvi’s performance both as Minister in charge of internal security in the nation and PCB are glaring failures but he cannot be touched even by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif!
About Naqvi, Noorani writes: Mohsin Naqvi, a close family member of General Asim Munir’s wife, Iram Asim, is another prime example of how power and influence have been exploited for personal gain under Munir’s tenure as Chief of Army Staff (COAS). Despite lacking relevant expertise, he was handed two of the most coveted and powerful positions in the country —Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board and Interior Minister. His appointment underscores an unprecedented level of nepotism, unchecked greed, and the brazen misuse of authority that has become the hallmark of this regime.
Syeda Hajra Sohail
Hajra Sohail, daughter of Syed Babar Ali Shah and the first cousin of the army chief General Asim Munir, was a scholarship manager in a federal government organization Pakistan Education Endowment fund (PEEF), previously known as National Endowment Scholarship for Talent (NEST) in November 2022 when General Asim Munir was appointed Pakistan Army Chief. This organization operated under the control of the ministry of federal education and professional training.
About Syeda Hajra’s meteoric rise, catalysed by General Munir, the report says: After the Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government completed its term in August 2023, Madad Ali Sindhi was appointed as the caretaker federal minister of the ministry. During the caretaker government, Hajra Sohail was suddenly appointed to one of the top positions, General Manager (GM), without following the established procedures. It was clear that she could not be directly appointed to the position of CEO from her role as a scholarship manager. Therefore, she was temporarily given a top position just below the CEO, while the office of the CEO was kept vacant, and the organization, for all practical purposes, came under her full control.
Noorani says that before publishing the report about Syeda Hajra’s sudden and sharp rise, he contacted Madad Ali Shah to talk about the issue. He says: Madad Ali Sindhi, the caretaker federal education minister, when asked by Fact Focus about the irregularities in an important appointment during his tenure, stated that he had been kept in the dark. ‘Hajra was very rude and incompetent, and I ordered her removal from PEEF, where there was no equitable representation of federating units,’ Sindhi said. He added that Hajra was very strong, with the entire bureaucracy backing her, leaving him feeling helpless.
Giving details regarding an incident of Syeda Hajra’s clash with renowned philanthropist Dr. Amjad Saqib, Noorani writes: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif summoned Hajra Sohail to his office in an attempt to placate her over the issue with Dr. Amjad Saqib. However, the country’s Prime Minister was ultimately unable to persuade a mere scholarship manager. Ultimately, under Dr. Khalid Maqbool’s leadership, the federal education ministry quietly de-notified Dr. Amjad Saqib from the board of PEEF.
Noorani went to great lengths to fulfil journalistic duties and called up Syeda Hajra to question her about the allegations of her proximity with General Munir being responsible for her rise. He writes: Fact Focus conducted an interview with Hajra Sohail to question her about her unprecedented and seemingly inexplicable promotions, culminating in her appointment as CEO of an organization where she was merely a scholarship manager a few months earlier. Hajra’s tone was threatening, and rather than addressing the questions, she demanded to know who had instructed Fact Focus to investigate her appointment. She insisted that the federal education ministry should be asked how she was appointed to the position.
When informed that the minister in charge at the time of her appointment, Madad Ali Sindhi, had told Fact Focus that she was rude and incompetent and that he had ordered her removal, Hajra dismissed his remarks, stating that he was no longer a minister and that Fact Focus should contact current officials instead. Efforts to reach the current federal education minister, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, for a response were unsuccessful, as he did not return calls.
Hajra also denied that her rapid promotions and appointments had anything to do with being a cousin of Army Chief General Asim Munir.
In his story published on Monday, Noorani has also written about Syeda Hajra’s father, maternal uncle of General Munir.
Syed Babar Ali Shah
Syed Babar Ali Shah, who had been based in London before General Asim Munir’s appointment as Army Chief, relocated to Islamabad and quickly emerged as one of the most powerful figures in the final months of the coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which completed its term in August 2023. Leveraging his influence, Babar interfered in the functioning of government ministries and departments, securing key appointments for his close associates. His main contact in the Prime Minister’s Office was then-advisor to the Prime Minister, and now federal minister for Economic Affairs, Ahad Khan Cheema. For a long time, both bureaucrats and politicians sought his assistance to secure important postings and promotions. His influence persisted even under the caretaker government led by Anwarul Haq Kakar, which began in August 2023.
In May 2024, after Shehbaz Sharif’s new government took office, Babar facilitated several appointments, including that of PSP officer Shahzad Naddem Bokhari as Zonal Director of FIA Islamabad. This is a key position in the FIA. Shahzad, who is a relative of Babar and the brother of former KPK caretaker CM Arshad Hussain Shah, frequently had Babar visiting his office in Melody Market, Islamabad, where Babar would stay for long periods. Despite repeated attempts, Shahzad avoided calls and questions from Fact Focus.
Babar Ali Shah was also contacted on seven different mobile numbers he uses, but he neither answered any calls nor responded to the questions sent to him.
Details regarding Babar Ali Shah’s two marriages have also been given in the Noorani story. According to the story: In 1976, at the age of 20, Babar married Nuzhat Babar, who was 22 at the time, and they had five children: Syeda Hajra (1977), Syed Hassan Babar (1980), Syeda Fatima (1981), Syeda Rabia (1982), and Syeda Ruqiyya (1987). In 2001, at the age of 45, Babar married 17-year-old Zahra Babar, who was seven years younger than his eldest daughter and four years older than his youngest daughter, who was 13. Babar and Zahra lived in the United Kingdom and have four children: Syed Azmat Hussain Babar (2002), Syed Abbas Hussain Babar (2006), Syed Ali Hussain Babar (2007), and Aleena Zahra (2008).
There are some details in Noorani’s story regarding Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
Mohsin Naqvi
Mohsin Naqvi, a close relative of Iram Asim, the wife of Army Chief General Asim Munir, was appointed as the Chief Executive of Pakistan’s largest province, Punjab, just 55 days after General Munir assumed the role of Army Chief. His appointment came after the dissolution of the provincial assembly by Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi, with his name being put forward by Hamza Shahbaz, the leader of the opposition in the outgoing assembly.
More details regarding Naqvi’s rise to the position of PCB chief, courtesy General Asim Munir, are available online. At one place, it says: Two weeks before the elections, the General Asim Munir-led dispensation took numerous illegal and illegitimate actions, none of which were reversed. These actions included shutting down the Fact Focus website, factfocus.com, in Pakistan on January 31, 2024. Then adds: On February 6, 2024, just 48 hours before the general elections, Naqvi was ‘elected’ as the PCB chairman through an army-controlled ‘election.’ At the time of his appointment, he was also the Chief Minister of Punjab.
After the controversial February 8, 2024, general elections, Naqvi was inducted into the federal cabinet as an advisor to the Prime Minister on Interior. With no federal interior minister in place, Naqvi effectively became the most powerful member of the federal cabinet, assuming the role of the de facto Interior Minister. A few weeks later, despite not being affiliated with any political party, Naqvi was ‘elected’ as a senator and took the oath as the federal interior minister.
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