KP chief minister, Imran Khan’s sisters stopped from reaching Adiala Jail

ISLAMABAD: Police stopped Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Tuesday from proceeding to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi to meet jailed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, while several other party leaders and family members were also denied access to the former prime minister.

Afridi left for the jail along with Imran Khan’s sisters as well as PTI workers and leaders. However, the delegation was halted at Islamabad’s Chungi No. 26 and was not allowed to move onward despite arguments with police.

Separately, PTI leaders Salman Akram Raja and Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, along with Bushra Bibi’s daughters, reached Adiala Jail but were also not permitted to meet Imran Khan. The cut-off time for prison visits was 4pm.

Imran Khan has been in prison since Aug 5, 2023, after being convicted in the Toshakhana case for concealing details of state gifts. He is currently serving a 14-year sentence at Adiala Jail in the £190 million corruption case, also referred to as the Al-Qadir Trust case.

The Islamabad High Court had allowed the former premier to hold meetings twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with family members, lawyers and other associates. Despite that order, he has faced restrictions on meeting visitors for several months.

Health concerns and medical check-up

According to media reports cited in the source, a medical team reached Adiala Jail to carry out a medical examination of Imran Khan amid continuing concern over his health in custody.

He underwent a medical procedure at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad on the night of January 24. That development was confirmed days later, while the family had apparently not been aware of it at the time. Since then, he has been receiving follow-up treatment at Pims.

The attempted visit came weeks after Imran Khan’s sister Aleema Khan suggested that the KP chief minister visit Adiala Jail. Aleema has repeatedly gone to the prison in efforts to meet her brother but has been denied access. Since that suggestion, Afridi has also started visiting the jail.

Statements by Afridi and Aleema Khan

The stoppage of the chief minister’s convoy caused heavy traffic congestion in the area, affecting many commuters. Those heading to the airport were reported to be among the worst affected, with some drivers using the wrong side of the road in an effort to reach their destination.

Speaking to reporters, Afridi said preventing the chief executive and cabinet members of a province from travelling for what he described as a peaceful meeting amounted to discrimination against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He also referred to what he said was repeated disrespect shown to Imran Khan’s sisters during earlier visits, including the use of water cannons, while saying the party had remained peaceful.

“What message are they trying to send? Do they want to separate Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from Pakistan?”

“Do they see the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa so weak that they can enact such cruelty?”

“Sometimes they stop the flow of wheat, sometimes they stop our gas, sometimes they stop electricity, and sometimes they stop the chief executive and his whole cabinet in the road. Will we stand by and watch? Is this a joke?”

Afridi also said that during Imran Khan’s tenure as prime minister, Nawaz Sharif had been allowed to go to hospital for treatment, but similar consideration was not being extended now despite what he called a serious eye problem.

“This is a fundamental human right that Imran Khan undergo treatment with his personal physicians, in the presence of his family members, at a hospital of his choice.”

In a statement posted on X, Afridi said the government’s conduct was “not only an insult to the chief executive but also to the 46 million people of KP.” Referring to Imran Khan’s health, he added:

“The state of his health is a matter of serious national concern and any harm caused to him due to negligence or deliberate denial of medical care is the direct responsibility of the federal government, the Punjab police, the administration of Adiala Jail and their handlers.”

“History will not forgive those who remain silent or complicit. Justice must prevail and it will prevail.”

Aleema Khan also posted on X about the incident, saying:

“After exhausting every democratic and legal avenue, we are left with no choice but to exercise our constitutional right to peaceful assembly in order to raise our voice against this illegitimate, stolen-mandate government and its continued political victimisation of Pakistan’s most popular leader.”

She added that the party’s gathering point was one kilometre from the jail and said:

“The blocking of an elected chief minister and his cabinet is not just an attack on one political party; it is an attack on democracy itself, an insult to the mandate of millions of Pakistanis.”

Ongoing dispute over access and treatment

The government and the opposition have for months traded accusations over Imran Khan’s treatment and access to medical care. The opposition has accused the government of lacking transparency, failing to ensure proper treatment and not allowing his personal doctors to see him. The government has denied those allegations.

The opposition has also called for Imran Khan to be shifted to Shifa International Hospital. Separately, jail authorities said Bushra Bibi underwent eye surgery at a Rawalpindi hospital on April 17. Both remain imprisoned at Adiala Jail.