As Salman Raja faces backlash over Aleema remarks, PTI leaders skip jail meeting

ISLAMABAD: As criticism mounted against PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja over his remarks about Aleema Khan, not a single senior party leader reached Adiala jail on Thursday to meet incarcerated founder Imran Khan, despite prior approval and a scheduled visit.

Under the apex court’s arrangement, PTI leaders are allowed to meet Imran Khan on Thursdays, while family members are designated Tuesdays. However, the party has faced sustained criticism for months for sending second- or third-tier representatives instead of senior leadership. In contrast, Imran Khan’s sisters have consistently attempted to meet him on Tuesdays but are often denied access.

For the April 16 meeting, the party had decided to nominate senior figures in an apparent effort to counter this criticism. A list submitted to Adiala jail Superintendent Sajid Baig included Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Sardar Latif Khosa, Babar Awan, Hamid Khan, Intizar Panjotha and Salman Akram Raja.

It was already expected that Raja might not attend due to the backlash he faced after making remarks about Aleema Khan, which triggered trolling on social media. A day earlier, he had also announced that he would send his resignation to Imran Khan following the criticism from the party founder’s sister.

However, despite the presence of other senior leaders on the list, none reached the jail by the 4pm cut-off time for the ملاقات.

When contacted, PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram said Barrister Gohar was in Lahore to meet families of party leaders detained in Kot Lakhpat Jail, while Salman Akram Raja was busy in court making arrangements to secure bail for recently arrested workers.

“I am not aware of the reason why other leaders did not go to Adiala jail. However, it is possible that they were thinking they would not be allowed to meet Imran Khan,” he said.

Commenting on the exchange between Raja and Aleema Khan, Akram said the situation reflected frustration due to ongoing circumstances. He added that both Imran Khan’s family members and party workers were concerned about the PTI founder and wanted his release at the earliest.

Separately, the PTI criticised the government over unscheduled loadshedding across the country. In a statement, Akram said it was surprising that a system with nearly 46,000MW installed capacity was unable to meet a demand of around 16,000MW, while outages had exceeded the government’s own announced limits.

He said Islamabad experienced more than four hours of outages, major urban centres in Punjab such as Lahore, Faisalabad and Kasur faced up to eight hours, while parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other regions endured 16 hours or more without electricity.

Akram also criticised the government’s economic narrative, saying that reliance on borrowing and remittances was being presented as stability. He warned that Pakistan’s GSP+ trade status could be at risk due to concerns over human rights and enforced disappearances.

He added that while the government highlighted a $1.07 billion current account surplus for March, the cumulative surplus had shrunk to negligible levels, while the trade deficit for nine months had widened beyond $25 billion compared to $21 billion last year.

He further said that out of a Rs1 trillion allocation for the Public Sector Development Programme, only Rs588 billion had been released and Rs414 billion spent in nine months.

On the diplomatic front, Akram welcomed continued engagement following the initial round of talks between the United States and Iran in Islamabad, saying Pakistan’s outreach to regional capitals reflected a balanced approach aimed at de-escalation.

He expressed hope that the expected second round of talks in Islamabad would build on the progress achieved and help resolve remaining differences.