The family of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has voiced profound concern regarding his safety and current status. Khan, who has been incarcerated for over a year and a half, has been shrouded in an unsettling silence for several weeks, prompting his sons to publicly express fears that something significant is being concealed. In Pakistan, television channels are reportedly prohibited from mentioning Imran Khan's name or displaying his. Image, and recent photographs of him have vanished from the internet, intensifying the family's apprehension.
Growing Family Concerns and Sons' Statement
The anxiety within Imran Khan's family escalated after they were denied permission to meet the former prime minister. His sons, particularly Qasim Khan, who resides in London, have for the first time openly articulated their worries. Speaking to Reuters, Qasim Khan stated that the family has not received any proof for the past three weeks to confirm that his father is alive. He described the uncertainty of not knowing if his father is safe, injured, or even alive as a form of mental torture, while qasim last saw his father in November 2022, following an assassination attempt on Imran Khan. This prolonged lack of contact and verifiable information has created an immensely stressful situation for the family, who are now seeking assistance from international human rights organizations.
Appeal to International Human Rights Organizations
Imran Khan's family has appealed to international human rights organizations to intervene in the matter. Their primary demands include the immediate restoration of visitation rights as per court orders, allowing his personal doctor to conduct a health examination, and providing an official update on Imran Khan's current condition. The family believes that denying these fundamental rights constitutes a violation of. Human rights and raises serious questions about Imran Khan's health and safety. The jail administration's consistent postponement of scheduled meetings has only deepened the. Family's concerns, leading them to suspect a deliberate attempt to isolate him.
Uncertainty Surrounding Imran Khan's Condition
While jail authorities have claimed that Imran Khan is well, this assertion reportedly comes only from unnamed officials, while the family contends that there is no official or visual evidence to substantiate these claims. A court order mandated weekly meetings, but the jail administration has consistently disregarded this directive. On top of that, his personal doctor has been denied access to him for over a year. This lack of transparency and the absence of concrete information have led the family to believe that the government is withholding crucial details about his well-being, while the lack of independent verification fuels speculation and exacerbates the family's distress.
Media Blackout and Absence from Public Sphere
A significant source of the family's concern is Imran Khan's complete disappearance from the public sphere. Several television channels in Pakistan have reportedly been explicitly instructed not to mention Imran Khan's name, broadcast his images or videos, or feature any of his statements or reactions. Consequently, the last clear image of Khan available is an old, blurry court photograph circulating on the internet. The family alleges that this isolation is a deliberate act. They argue that Imran Khan remains one of the most popular leaders among the people, and the.
Government, aware that he can't be defeated democratically, is attempting to erase him from public memory and discourse. Imran Khan has been imprisoned since August 2023, having been convicted in several different cases, while these include the Toshakhana case, a case involving the alleged leaking of a secret cable for which he received a 10-year sentence, and the Al-Qadir Trust case, which resulted in a 14-year sentence. Imran Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have consistently maintained that all these cases are politically motivated. They allege that the sole purpose of these prosecutions is to sideline Imran Khan from politics and prevent him from participating in upcoming elections. PTI claims that these legal actions are an attempt to undermine the democratic process and silence a popular political figure.