Kasur police raid dance party at farmhouse owned by PTI’s Sheikh Waqas Akram

Rating Justification

The iVerify Pakistan team reviewed this content and found it to be false.

To corroborate this matter, the iVerify Pakistan team conducted a keyword search and contacted the Kasur police for further details about the case.

Posts from users on multiple social media platforms on April 6, 2025, shared a video of multiple men and women lined up after they were arrested during a dance party in Kasur, claiming that the farmhouse belonged to PTI Secretary Information Sheikh Waqas Akram. However, the farmhouse did not belong to him and he did not have any link with it.

HOW IT STARTED

On April 6, a user on X, who is a lawyer according to their bio and is followed by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, shared a video in which several women and men were lined up as the person filming asked them to look into the camera.

The caption of the post said, “Police raid at Sheikh Waqas Akram’s guest house. PTI social media team meeting underway, don’t try to enter: Security guard. Twenty-five girls and 30 boys caught red-handed in semi-naked condition. Police seized liquor bottles, dancing bridges, shisha drinking equipment and a sound system.”

The post received over 292,000 views and was shared 1,000 times.

The video was shared with the same caption and claim by several other X accounts as can be seen here, here, here and here.

The video with a similar claim was further shared on Facebook here and here, the latter with 22,000 views.

Several Instagram accounts also shared the clip as can be seen here and here, as well as on Threads.

METHODOLOGY

A fact-check was initiated to determine the veracity of the claim due to its virality and keen public interest in PTI leaders and the party’s affairs.

Analysing the video to detect any manipulation resulted in Deepware not detecting any deepfake components whereas Attestiv’s technical analysis showed an 81 per cent suspicion rating.

A reverse image search yielded other digital news forums such as Mega News on Instagram and Pakilinks News on YouTube reporting on a police raid at a farmhouse dance party where “illegal and immoral” activities were underway as well. Both the pages made no mention of Akram.

Posts from numerous X users, such as a self-described journalist whose post gained over 581,000 views, also discussed the incident while making no mention of the PTI representative.

A keyword search for “farmhouse”, “raid” and “Pakistan” yielded a news report by English media outlet Dawn dated April 7, titled: “Raid on farmhouse ‘dance party’: Two cops suspended as court discharges case against 55”.

As per the report, the police had raided a farmhouse near Pakki Havali village on April 4, following a “tip-off” about an alleged “dance party” being held there, arresting 55 persons and putting them behind bars.

The news report featured no mention of Akram in connection to the farmhouse’s ownership.

Press releases from the Kasur police regarding action against the policemen who made the video also did not mention Akram in any capacity.

Contacting the Kasur police for a response yielded the incident’s first information report which identified the farmhouse’s owner as Mohammad Shehzad who fled from the spot. It had no mention of Akram.

Lastly, all reporting and coverage of the incident did not mention Akram in any capacity and nor was the incident mentioned by or referred to by his or the PTI’s political opponents.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: FALSE

The claim that PTI’s Sheikh Waqas Akram owned the farmhouse which was raided by the Kasur police during a dance party is false.

Akram did not own the farmhouse as per the incident’s FIR and nor was he mentioned anywhere else in connection to the incident.

Evidence and References

April 7, 2025, Dawn news report:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1902606/raid-on-farmhouse-dance-party-two-cops-suspended-as-court-discharges-case-against-55

April 6, 2025, Mega News Instagram post:
https://www.instagram.com/meganews.tv/p/DIDwg5xhIGH/

April 6, 2025, Pakilink News YouTube video:
https://youtu.be/T3lLEcqmLNI?si=S9BV0AZe86oaahFN