Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan is currently in the headlines. The family is claiming that they are not being allowed to meet him in jail. Imran Khan has been in jail for more than two years. In recent times, rumors regarding his health have intensified. The family says that they are extremely worried because they have not been allowed to meet Imran Khan for several weeks.
The uneasiness increased further on Friday when Imran Khan’s son Qasim Khan publicly demanded the government to prove that the 73-year-old PTI founder is alive. Qasim said in a social media post, we demand proof of Imran Khan’s life.
conflict over meeting
For almost a month, no family member, lawyer or party associate has been allowed to meet Imran Khan. This has given rise to speculations that some harm may have been done to him inside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where he has been lodged for more than two years. Due to this the family is continuously raising its voice. Meanwhile, let us know what the rules say about the access and meeting of ‘political prisoners’?
What is the government claiming?
While the government claims that Imran Khan is being given all “possible facilities”, a senior cabinet member said on Friday that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was trying to meet Khan in violation of the jail manual, according to Dawn. PTI reacted sharply to the statement of Information Minister Atta Tarar.
What do the rules say?
Meanwhile, the question arises: what does the prison manual actually say? According to Don, the visits and phone calls are linked to a prisoner’s “good behaviour”.
According to Dawn: “The permission to visit and make phone calls to prisoners is linked to their good behaviour, which means the jail superintendent has the power to allow or deny visits.” Current and former prison officials told Dawn that prisoners in Punjab, including political prisoners,
- Permission to meet 5 people per week including lawyer and relatives
- 30 minutes of phone time per week
- Even death row prisoners can meet family and lawyers once a week and
- You can get 30 minutes of talking time on the phone through the public call offices of Adilaya Jail.
- According to Dawn, political prisoners are kept in special cells and kept under tight security, and there is a daily medical check-up to ensure that they are healthy or not.
Power in the hands of jail superintendent
But these rules are not strict. These rules largely depend on the behavior of the prisoner. Which makes this process “necessarily subjective”. Serious allegations — such as terrorism or anti-state activities — may also limit access.
A retired senior jail department official told Dawn that permission to meet lawyers or relatives lies in the hands of the jail superintendent, who can stop the visit or call if the prisoner’s behavior is considered “not good”.
Despite court orders and repeated attempts, Imran Khan’s three sisters, PTI members and Chief Minister Sohail Afridi have been camping outside Adiala jail for several days and demanding to meet them.
Son asked for proof of being alive
Qasim Khan said that the family has been kept in complete darkness. “My father has been under arrest for 845 days. For the last 6 weeks he has been kept in solitary confinement in a death cell, with zero transparency. Despite clear court orders, his sisters have been barred from every visit. No phone calls, no visits and no proof of life. My brother and I—both of us have had no contact with our father.”
Qasim said, “We demand proof of his survival.” Imran Khan was jailed in a corruption case in the year 2023.
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