PTI leaders once again denied meeting with Imran Khan at Adiala jail

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders were once again prevented from meeting incarcerated party founder Imran Khan at Adiala jail on Thursday, as jail authorities failed to grant approval despite prior arrangements made in compliance with court directions.

Advocate Niazullah Niazi, speaking to a media outlet, said that PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja had shared a list of six persons with the jail authorities for a meeting with Imran Khan, as per the directions of the court.

"We reached the jail and waited for approval but we did not receive any message from the jail administration that the meeting would be allowed," he lamented.

Niazi explained that during Ramazan, jail meetings were permitted until 3pm. He said the PTI delegation waited at the jail premises well past the deadline but received no communication from the administration.

"We waited there till 3:15pm and then decided to leave," he said.

Medical report demand also turned down

Apart from the denied meeting, PTI leaders also sought information about the medical team that had visited Adiala jail on Wednesday to examine Imran Khan. The party leaders demanded a copy of the medical report prepared after the examination.

However, according to Niazi, the jail officials informed the PTI delegation that the medical report would be handed over to the Islamabad Chief Commissioner, who would then submit it to the court. The PTI leaders were told that they should approach the court if they wished to obtain the medical report.

"We also asked officials about the medical team, which visited Adiala jail on Wednesday and examined Imran, and demanded a medical report but we were informed that the report will be handed over to the Islamabad Chief Commissioner, who would then submit it to the court. We were told that we should approach the court to get the medical report," Niazi said.

The denial of the meeting marks yet another instance in which PTI leaders have been unable to access their party founder despite following what they describe as proper legal channels and court-directed procedures. The party has repeatedly raised concerns about the difficulties it faces in securing meetings with Imran Khan at Adiala jail, where he remains imprisoned.

The incident also highlights the ongoing tensions between the PTI and authorities over access to the former prime minister, with the party criticising the government for what it describes as deliberate obstruction of their legally sanctioned right to meet their leader.