A Pakistani-origin Canadian citizen, a PhD scholar of University of Toronto, Hamza Ahmad Khan, was reported missing on February 19 in Lahore where he had been staying with a friend since he went to Pakistan on February 13. Later, Pakistani media reports confirmed that Khan was arrested and also appeared in court for an initial hearing, where he was given a 14-day custody. The mysterious disappearance of Khan created a stir in the academic circles until it was found out that he was arrested. Ali Usman Qasi, an associate professor of humanities and social sciences at Lahore University of Management Sciences, wrote on X that he had met with Khan a day before he went missing. “I strongly disagree with many of Hamza’s political views, but what I despise most is that he has been picked up for them,” he wrote.“We spoke candidly for an hour and left with a better understanding of where the other was coming from. This is why dialogue matters and why reaching across the political spectrum is essential.”

Who is Hamza Ahmad Khan? Why was he arrested in Pakistan?

A Canadian-Pakistani scholar, Khan went to Pakistan for his field research for his thesis on “the politics of democracy promotion in Muslim majority societies”. He is doing his PhD from the University of Toronto. He had worked as a chartered accountant in Pakistan and the UK. According to Pakistani newspaper Dawn, Khan was arrested by the federal National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency due to his online activity.The Pakistani authorities said they were looking into the “inflammatory” social media posts of Khan, which are “designed to incite public unrest”. The Toronto Star identified an X account believed to be of Khan that posted dozens of posts critical of the Pakistani government, though the complaint against Khan did not mention any specific post.Khan, in his recent posts, spoke about Imran Khan, Pakistan being part of Donald Trump’s Board of Peace etc. They are mostly critical of Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Pakistan Army Chief of Staff Asim Munir and of Bilawal Bhutto Zardai, the son of assassinated prime minister Benazir Bhutto.