Journalist Hamid Mir has said that the detention of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s sister Aleema Khan under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) has deepened the cycle of political revenge that could continue for years.

Speaking on a private news channel, Mir said that the detention had disrupted what he described as a political “balance sheet” that had emerged from the arrests of women from the families of Imran Khan and the Sharifs.

He recalled that Maryam Nawaz was arrested during Imran Khan’s tenure as prime minister, after which the PTI government faced criticism that women from the Sharif family had been targeted.

Mir stated the the subsequent arrest of Bushra Bibi after Shehbaz Sharif became prime minister was seen as balancing that political equation.

“Now, arresting Imran Khan’s sister under 3MPO means that you had no case of corruption or illegal activity against her; she is on bail for the cases against her, and her bail has already been granted,” he said.

He also stated that the detention of another woman from Imran Khan’s family had changed that political equation.

“Earlier, a woman from the Sharif family was arrested, so they arrested a woman from Imran Khan’s family. Now you have arrested another woman from Imran Khan’s family, his elder sister,” Mir said.

He linked the detention to the Punjab government led by Chief Minister (CM) Maryam Nawaz and stated that the use of Section 3 of the MPO by the Lahore Deputy Commissioner (DC) had established a precedent that could have consequences beyond the current political situation.

“Therefore, I think this has injected a new dose of vendetta and revenge into Pakistani politics,” Mir observed. “We will bear the consequences of this for many years, even decades to come, and this cycle will continue,” he added.

Mir said that the cycle could continue even if the PTI returned to power in the future, arguing that the actions taken by one government could become a basis for retaliation by another. “If Imran Khan comes to power tomorrow in some way, or the PTI comes to power, then this revenge will continue,” he pointed out.

His remarks came after Aleema was detained under the Punjab MPO ahead of the PTI’s planned September 27 protest and march towards Islamabad. The Lahore DC’s Office issued the detention order on September 20.

The order stated that Aleema was detained under the Punjab MPO, 1960.

Imran Khan’s sisters Dr Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi were also detained for 30 days on Monday under the same law.

The detention order for Uzma and Noreen stated that they were “prejudicial to the public safety and maintenance of public order” and accused them of involvement in the May 9 protest, motivating workers to damage public and government property and mobilising workers through social media and public meetings.

The order also stated that multiple cases had been registered against them and described them as potential dangers to public peace and tranquillity.