The sons of Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan have voiced grave concern over their father’s health and well-being, warning that authorities may be concealing “something irreversible.” Speaking to Reuters, Sulaiman Isa Khan and Qasim Khan said more than three weeks have passed without any verified proof that the 73-year-old opposition leader is alive and well.“It’s psychological torture not knowing whether our father is healthy, injured, or even alive,” Qasim Khan said.
Kanul 24: The family has had no direct or independently confirmed access to the jailed former cricketer-turned-politician despite a court order mandating weekly meetings.Imran Khan has been incarcerated in Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi, since August 2023.
He is serving multiple sentences totaling decades in prison on charges he and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party dismiss as politically motivated.
These include a 10-year term for illegally selling state gifts (the Toshakhana case), another 10 years for allegedly revealing a classified diplomatic cable, and 14 years in a corruption case.
PTI insists the cases are a deliberate attempt to sideline the country’s most popular leader ahead of elections and remove him permanently from politics. “They fear him because they know they cannot defeat him democratically,” Qasim Khan said.Despite repeated requests, the family has been denied access to Khan’s personal physician for over a year.
Pakistan’s Interior Ministry has not responded to Reuters’ requests for comment. An anonymous prison official claimed Khan is in “perfect health” and there are no plans to move him to a higher-security facility.
The brothers, who live in London with their mother Jemima Goldsmith, last saw their father in November 2022 after an assassination attempt.
They have appealed to domestic and international human rights organizations to enforce court-ordered access.“This is no longer just politics; it’s a human-rights crisis,” Qasim Khan stressed. “Pressure must come from all sides.
We draw strength from him, but we need to know he is safe.”The growing information blackout has fueled speculation and heightened global concern about the treatment of political prisoners in Pakistan.
