A reporter working for Geo News has gone missing in Karachi on Friday.
Ali Imran Syed, left his home between 7pm and 8pm, local time, after telling his family he would be back home in half an hour. He has not returned home since, Dawn reported citing Geo News.
It also quoted his wife as saying that his car was parked outside the house and he had left his mobile phone at home.
The Geo News administration stated that the Karachi police chief and DIG East have been informed about Imran's disappearance, the publication said, adding that the family had also submitted a report to Sachal police station.
The reporter's disappearance has also garnered attention on social media. The hashtag 'BringBackAliImran' was among the top trends on Twitter on Saturday.
Rights watchdog Amnesty International's South Asia Office feared Imran was "feared to have been subjected to an enforced disappearance for his reporting." "The authorities must establish his whereabouts immediately," the human rights group said.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan also called for Imran's "immediate release."
Condemning the reporter's disappearance, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said the incident was an "attack on the right to freedom of expression."
Meanwhile, Information Minister Shibli Faraz said he "sincerely hoped and prayed" Imran would reunite with his family and friends soon.
Disappearing of Journalists in South Asia is a common yet agitating incident over the past couple of years.
Shafiqul Islam Kajol, a leading Bangladeshi photojournalist and newspaper editor, went missing on March 10, a day after defamation charges were filed against him by an influential ruling party lawmaker.
After a 53-day disappearance, Kajol turned up in police custody on May 3 after the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) arrested him on charges of trespassing on the Benapole border in Jessore.
Shown formally arrested in the cases, Kajol has been in jail since then.