September 17, 2025
By Xari Jalil
LAHORE
Two petitions filed in the Sindh High Court call for action to be taken over the enforced disappearance of two senior political leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Nisar Ahmed Panhwar, and Anwar Khan Tareen, who were abducted from Karachi on Tuesday. The date for the hearing has been given as September 19. The petition for Nisar Ahmed Panhwar was filed by Mohsin Nisar, his son, while Samina Bibi filed the petition for her husband Anwar Khan Tareen.
According to information provided by the MQM central leadership as well as from a petition filed by Panhwar’s son, the currently missing senior political worker Nisar Panhwar has been a victim of enforced disappearances on multiple occasions by law enforcement agencies, including the Sindh Rangers and other state actors.
“This is the fifth such incident, highlighting a pattern of illegal abductions targeting political dissidents,” said MQM Central Committee member Hassaan Butt. “However there has never been a single piece of evidence produced against Nisar Ahmed Panhwar of being involved in any criminal or unlawful activity.”
Panhwar served as a Member of Parliament in the National Assembly from 2003 to 2007 and Provincial Assembly of Sindh from 2008 to 2013.
Previous abductions
The first and second abductions of Panhwar took place before 2022. While specific dates for the initial two incidents have not been publicly detailed in available records, they have been acknowledged as prior unlawful detentions by state agencies, as referenced in following reports.
His third abduction was in August 2022, when he was picked up from his residence in Karachi by personnel of Sindh Rangers around 3 AM and remained missing for several days. Reportedly his family was also threatened. In 2024, Panhwar was abducted for a fourth time, this time along with his son, Mohsin Nisar, by unknown armed individuals in police uniforms and civil dress, shortly after filing nomination papers for elections.
They were held in illegal detention for 43 days, during which their whereabouts were unknown to their family. The family approached the Sindh High Court, which directed recovery. They were released on February 21, 2024, without any judicial process, underscoring custodial torture and enforced disappearance.
Fifth abduction & petition
On Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at approximately 1:00 PM, Nisar Panhwar, left his residence at house with Anwar Khan Tareen and proceeded towards Gulistan-e-Johar for a scheduled meeting. However, when Mohsin Nisar tried to contact his father later in the day, he discovered that both Nisar Ahmed’s and Anwar Khan Tareen’s cellphones were switched off and untraceable.
Mohsin Nisar concerned for the safety of both missing people called the 15 police helpline, personally visited various police stations, and registered a complaint, however he said in his petition that the efforts were futile.
In response to the abductions, the Karachi Bar Association also passed a resolution on 10 September strongly condemning the act calling it a blatant violation of the principles of justice and law.
“My father is a patient of diabetes, a condition that requires consistent and specialized care,” said Mohsin Nisar. He has pleaded to have the court give directives to trace his father and Anwar Tareen, to provide protection to them and their families and to help bring the perpetrators to accountability.
Reactions
Meanwhile party leader Altaf Hussain, also tweeted his statement in this regard.
“The mysterious disappearance of MQM leaders Nisar Ahmed Panhwar and Anwar Khan Tareen is highly concerning,” he said in his tweet. “According to reports, on September 16, 2025, Anwar Khan Tareen arrived at Nisar Ahmed Panhwar’s house around 2:30 PM, from where he took Nisar Panhwar with him, and left to attend an organizational program.”
ایم کیوایم کے رہنماؤں نثار احمد پنہور اور انور خان ترین کی پراسرار گمشدگی انتہائی قابل تشویش ہے
۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔
ایم کیوایم کے رہنما نثار احمد پنہور اور انور خان ترین کی پراسرار گمشدگی انتہائی قابل تشویش ہے۔ اطلاعات کے مطابق آج مورخہ 16ستمبر 2025ء کو انور خان ترین تقریباً… pic.twitter.com/N5hbUqOPF2
— Altaf Hussain (@AltafHussain_90) September 16, 2025
Convener of the MQM Central Committee, Mustafa Azizabadi, appealed to international rights organizations to take notice. “Abductions and enforced disappearances of MQM leaders former Member of Parliament Nisar Ahmed Panhwar and Anwer Khan Tareen is strongly condemnable. We appeal to Amnesty Asia and Human Rights Watch (HRW) and other human rights organizations to raise voices on this issue,” he said.
Human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari also voiced out her concern.
Disturbing reports of the enforced disappearance of two senior MQM leaders, Nisar Panhwar and Anwar Khan Tareen, from Karachi.
Nisar Panhwar has been abducted for the 4th time and Anwar Khan for the 2nd.
Impunity for enforced disappearances continues and anyone who dares to… https://t.co/a8C8mxTgox
— Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir (@ImaanZHazir) September 16, 2025
Human rights activist Amina Masood Janjua on behalf of her organization Defence of Human Rights (DOHR) condemned the enforced disappearance of the two political leaders.
“They are political leaders, and in the case of Nisar Panhwar, he is also a former parliamentarian, yet he has repeatedly been made a victim of enforced disappearance, similar to many other political workers,” said Amina Masood while speaking to Voicepk. ” It is a disturbing pattern. Just because ‘they’ don’t want to allow some political people to participate in elections and want to remove them from the main arena. We condemn this. Enforced disappearances are being used as a tool on anyone now – those seeking their rights, on nationalists, on politicians, journalists, lawyers are abducted.”
She said that there should be a law declaring this enforced disappearance a crime and appealed to different international organizations to pressure the government to enforce such laws.
“This is unfortunate that every day we wake up to a news of another enforced disappearance of our people, anyone and everyone who carries out a message of Altaf Hussain is subjected to enforced disappearances, brutal tortures and extra judicial killings,” said Hassaan Butt, while speaking to Voicepk. “We filed a court petition but we understand that the courts are also under pressure of the power military establishment who do not like the message of Altaf Hussain who wants a democratic liberal progressive country without political interference from any sphere.”
Butt said that the party demanded an immediate release of both of these leaders.
“It is very important to note that whenever a calendar event of MQM come close, these victimizations spark to a new level, and we are given a message to stop. As September 17 is the birth day of Altaf Hussain, this is happening once again,” said Butt. “Some of the other incidents that have happened in the past include Dr Imran Farooq murder on 16 September 2010, and also in September 2022 Altaf Hussain’s residence was burnt down.”