Sisters of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan were once more refused a visit with their brother at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. Imran Khan’s sisters were not permitted entry into the jail, leading them to return to the checkpost where they are typically halted by police, as reported by Pakistan’s leading daily Dawn.
“Usually, police do not allow us to proceed onward and the jail administration informs the court that we did not arrive because of which the meeting could not be arranged. This time we reached outside the gate of Adiala jail and informed them that we are here,” said Khan’s sister Aleema.
She mentioned that they ensured their faces were captured in the CCTV footage to prevent the jail authorities from denying their presence. When asked how they managed to reach the jail’s main gate, they declined to disclose it, stating that it would make it challenging to do so again, Dawn reported.
“We could have stayed there but police officials asked us to leave because their jobs would be in danger otherwise.” Aleema Khan noted that 51 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers were detained during a protest outside the jail last week, and efforts were underway to secure their release.
The Islamabad High Court has granted permission for Imran Khan’s family, lawyers, and associates to meet him twice a week. However, the former PM has been largely restricted from meeting them for several months. Last month, Khan’s son, Kasim, criticized his father’s detention as “arbitrary” and expressed serious concerns about the treatment by Pakistani authorities, which he claimed violates international human rights conventions.
During the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) session in Geneva, Kasim Khan highlighted that Imran Khan’s case was not an “isolated incident” but a significant example of a broader pattern of repression in Pakistan since 2022. He raised issues regarding the detention of political prisoners, civilian trials by military courts, and the suppression of journalists through abduction or exile, as reported by Dawn.
Kasim Khan, mentioning that his father was in solitary confinement, also addressed the general elections in Pakistan held in February 2024, reiterating PTI’s claims of election rigging. He emphasized Pakistan’s commitments under the GSP-plus framework to uphold international human rights conventions, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Convention against Torture.
He pointed out that Imran Khan is being prevented from meeting his family and denied medical attention. Additionally, he criticized the trial of civilians in military courts, stating that it breaches treaty obligations, Dawn reported.
“My brother and I are not political people. We never wanted to come before bodies like this. [But] my father’s life demands that we take action. We cannot stand by as his health deteriorates and he is kept away from us. If the situation were reversed, we know he would not stop fighting until we were free. That is the very least we can do for him,” he added.
