Imran Khan’s family demand proof that former PM is still alive as online rumours grow

1. Asia
2. South Asia

Khan’s party says his family and lawyers have been denied visits for weeks – but the authorities insist he is alive and well

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The family of former Pakistan leader Imran Khan have demanded that jail authorities provide evidence that he is alive and well, after weeks of being denied visits and growing rumours about his death online.

Mr Khan’s son Kasim Khan issued a rare public appeal late on Thursday, saying his father had been held in “complete isolation” for weeks and denied all contact with relatives or his lawyers. Mr Khan, founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and a dominant political figure in the country, has been imprisoned since August 2023 over charges his party says are politically motivated.

In a post on X (Twitter), Kasim said his father had now spent 845 days in detention and had been confined to a “death cell” without phone access or family visits.

“For the past six weeks, he has been kept alone in a death cell in an environment of complete isolation. His sisters have been barred from every meeting, despite clear court orders. No phone calls, no meetings, and no news of his well-being. My brother and I have not been able to contact our father in any way,” he wrote.

He alleged that the conditions being imposed on his father were not linked to due process, describing them as a deliberate effort to obscure the former premier’s health situation.

“This complete darkness is not part of any security protocol,” he said, adding: “Let it be clear that the Pakistani government and its masters will bear full legal, moral, and international responsibility for my father’s safety and every consequence of this inhumane isolation.”

Kasim urged foreign governments and human rights organisations to intervene, calling for confirmation that his father is alive, access for relatives in line with court orders, an end to what he termed “inhumane isolation”, and the release of “Pakistan’s most popular political leader, who has been imprisoned solely for political reasons.”

Mr Khan’s sister, Aleema Khanum, said the family has spent months attempting to visit him at Adiala Jail, a high-security prison near Islamabad.

“For the last six to seven months, they have caused a lot of trouble; sometimes they let me meet him, sometimes they let one of my sisters meet him, sometimes they don’t let anyone meet him. Many times, we wait outside for hours,” she told Indian broadcaster NDTV.

Another sister, Noreen Niazi, speaking to Indian news agency ANI, said relatives have again been refused visits for the past four weeks. “We don’t know anything. They are not telling us anything, nor are they letting anybody meet him,” she said, adding that even PTI leaders with scheduled appointments had been turned away.

Ms Niazi recalled that the former premier – who was once an iconic leader of Pakistan’s national cricket team before entering politics – was kept in isolation for nearly three weeks last year without electricity or reading material. She said the treatment violated Pakistan’s prison rules, which limit solitary confinement to four days.

“He is going through a tough time alone. He is in isolation … This is the pinnacle of oppression,” she said.

She also accused police of using excessive force against Mr Khan’s supporters. “The police have been ordered to stop us and, I believe, also permitted to do to us whatever they want … This is the first time in Pakistan that these people have been allowed to beat up people like there won’t be any consequences,” she claimed.

Mr Khan’s senior aide Zulfi Bukhari told The Independent that while the party did not give credence to the rumours of the former prime minister’s death, they had gained strength online because “Imran Khan has been kept for nearly a month in isolation without meeting anybody”.

“We should just be allowed to meet him. That would put an end to all social media speculations and actual worries about his health, the decay of his health, his living conditions,” he said.

He questioned the timing of the move to curtail legal and family access, saying it comes as the government seeks to pass sweeping amendments giving additional powers to the army’s chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir.

Under the amendments, Mr Munir will retain his rank even after completing his term and enjoy legal immunity from prosecution for life.

Mr Bukhari said the authorities were keeping Mr Khan “caged” so he cannot speak out against the changes.

“They’ve just cut all access to the outside world at a very crucial time when crazy amendments are being passed in parliament, when tenures of army chiefs are being extended. So not getting a statement out of Imran Khan is ideal [for the government] because when you have access to him, he gives statements that then get put onto his Twitter and get passed on to the media. To avoid all of that, [that] is why he’s been isolated in these crucial days.”

Adiala Jail authorities have strongly denied all accusations, insisting that the 73-year-old politician remains inside the facility and is in good physical condition.

“The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leadership has been informed regarding Imran Khan’s health. All necessary care is being provided to the PTI chief,” the administration said in a statement. It dismissed reports of his secret transfer to another facility as “entirely baseless”, adding: “Imran Khan is in Adiala Jail and is healthy. The social media rumours about his transfer are unfounded.”

Earlier, an adviser to current prime minister Shehbaz Sharif – an opponent of Mr Khan – also dismissed the rumours. “This is absolutely wrong. His health is fine and taken care of. There is a team of doctors that checks him on a weekly and daily basis [and looks after his] medicine, diet, facilities [and] exercises,” Rana Sanaullah Khan told Ary News.

Mr Khan, who became prime minister in 2018 before being ousted in a parliamentary vote of no confidence four years later, has claimed that dozens of criminal cases against him are aimed at blocking his return to politics.

He and his wife were sentenced in January to 14 and seven years’ imprisonment, respectively, in a corruption case he says is fabricated. PTI officials have also repeatedly alleged that he is being held in inhumane conditions and subjected to prolonged solitary confinement, allegations the authorities have denied.

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