Anchorperson Imran Riaz offloaded from Dubai-bound flight

• Imran Riaz was travelling to Dubai for medical tests.
• He was denied boarding as his name is on black list.
• Riaz says he was fed something “fatal” during imprisonment.

LAHORE: Authorities offloaded anchorperson and journalist Imran Riaz Khan from a Dubai-bound flight, immigration sources told Geo News Friday.

The immigration sources said that the anchorperson — who has been booked in several sedition cases — was offloaded as his name has been added to the black list.

The sources said that Riaz, who is on bail till July 19 in a sedition case, was travelling to Dubai for a medical test.

Following the incident, Riaz confirmed that he was denied boarding and said that he was indeed travelling to Dubai for medical tests.

“My doctors told me that I was fed something while in jail that could have been fatal for me [...] thus, to prove this, I wanted to get my tests done,” the journalist said in a tweet.

Sharing a video while Riaz was in prison, former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan had said he was kept in a "cage" where civilised countries wouldn't even keep animals.

The entire PTI leadership has been vocal about the treatment meted out to the journalist, calling it "unjust". The party widely condemned the arrest and cases against him.

Taking to Twitter, Khan shared a video from a small prison cell where Riaz was detained. He said that Riaz was also suspected to be "poisoned" in jail.

The PTI leader went on to say that those involved in this maltreatment of Riaz should be ashamed of it and that doing so would only add to people's anger against "this cabal of crooks & their handlers".