Ayaz Amir, a widely respected journalist, was left with bruises on his face and a torn shirt when “unidentified men” beat him up in Lahore.
The journalist said the attackers dragged him out of his car after he got into it to depart the office of the Dunya News channel. Amir, who works as a senior analyst, was leaving after the recording of a show.
He shared his images, which showed bruises on his face with his shirt torn, and described the incident.
“A man wearing a face mask emerged from the vehicle and collared my driver,” Amir said in a statement.
“As I questioned the man, a couple of other men also arrived by my side, opened the door of my car and unleashed blows to my face, and dragged me out of the vehicle,” Amir added.
The attackers took away his mobile phone and wallet.
A number of commentators and politicians appeared to link the incident to a speech Ayaz Amir delivered at a seminar organized by the Islamabad High Court Bar Association on the topic ‘Regime Change and its Fallout on Pakistan’.
Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and former prime minister Imran Khan, whose government was dislodged after a parliamentary vote earlier this year, also attended the conference.
Amir reportedly said the sole reason behind Khan’s ouster was that the military establishment feared that the former prime minister emerging as too strong a leader. He also reportedly termed the generals as property dealers.
The journalist also faulted Imran Khan’s governance during the speech.
Pakistan’s military has not so far commented on Ayaz Amir’s comments or the incident.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the incident and ordered Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz to hold a high-level investigation.
Imran Khan strongly condemned the “violence” against the senior journalist.
