Arman Sabir is a Pakistani investigative journalist. In 2019 and 2020, he was chosen Secretary of the Karachi Press Club. He was Senior Correspondent for the Weekly Bol News English till its discontinuation in January 2023. He worked at ARY News from 2014 to 2022 before joining the newspaper in February 2022. He previously worked for the BBC Urdu Service for over six years. Previously, he was assigned to the capital city of Islamabad from December 2009 until May 2012 after being elevated to producer. He joined BBC Urdu Service as a correspondent in August 2007. From 1999 to 2007, he worked for the widely circulated English-language daily newspaper Dawn in Pakistan.
Education
Born in Karachi, the commercial hub of Pakistan, Arman Sabir got his master’s degree in mass communications from the University of Karachi.
Work
He has published a number of investigative articles about Pakistan’s criminal justice system. He also writes about issues of national identity cards, transportation, and law enforcement agencies. He began his career from a wire service, Pakistan Press International (PPI), in 1993, and then joined the newspaper in 1999.
Sabir covered one of the worst cyclones that impacted the coastal portions of Sindh, Pakistan’s southernmost state, in 1999. He highlighted the gathering of female sex workers at a Karachi hotel organised by an NGO to create awareness among them about safe sex. It was the first such program organised for female sex workers in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, where prostitution is illegal.
In February 2006, he visited the south-eastern area of Khokhrapar, which borders Indian Rajasthan, and saw the construction of a new railway station on the Pakistani side at zero point. He has written about the reopening of the railway link between India and Pakistan after a 40-year break. In 2007, he travelled to Balochistan following severe rains to repair a portion of the recently built Makran Coastal Highway.
In Radio Journalism
In August 2009, Sabir was promoted from reporter to producer and dispatched to Islamabad to carry out radio programming. He produced numerous radio broadcasts in Islamabad. He suggested jail modifications in Pakistan, and an hour of radio transmission was dedicated to the subject.
In 2009, Pakistan experienced a major flood. In Islamabad, BBC Urdu broadcasted a special radio programme for flood victims. It was supposed to be a one-month project, but due to its popularity, it lasted for several months. The broadcast consisted of three ten-minute bulletins on FM partner stations. Arman Sabir and Ahmed Raza supervised the “Lifeline Pakistan” programme, which was led by Shafi Naqi Jamie. Arman Sabir and Ahmed Raza trained the new members for two months and later the programme was handed over to the new team.
In Online Journalism
In June 2011, Sabir was assigned to the Online desk. His job was to update and refresh bbcurdu.com with new incoming stories. In addition to assigning reporters with new ideas, his responsibilities include editing reports from reporters. He was returned to Karachi in May 2012.
Notable Achievements
Arman Sabir was the Karachi Press Club’s Secretary. On December 28, 2019, he was re-elected for a second straight one-year term in the KPC Elections 2020, and he served until December 26, 2020. He received 846 votes out of the total 1476 eligible votes cast, compared to Faizan Lakhani of GEO, who received 312. Earlier, Arman Sabir had been elected as secretary, receiving 925 votes out of a total of 1582 eligible votes in the KPC Elections 2019. In the yearly elections held on December 29, 2018, his opponent received 251 votes. Arman Sabir was chosen Treasurer of the Karachi Press Club in 2013. He has been elected as a member of the Karachi Press Club’s Governing Body five times. He has served as secretary of several KPC committees, including the canteen committee, the vigilance committee, and the Internet committee, in addition to remaining a member of several others. He is also a member of the Karachi Union of Journalists, where he served as Secretary in 2009.
Visits
In 2004, he travelled to the United States to cover the US presidential election campaign. He went to swing states like Texas, Washington, and Ohio. He also visited Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The US State Department coordinated the visit.