Islamabad: With speculation rife about the condition of the country’s former prime minister Imran Khan, a Pakistani journalist has now claimed that he may have died in prison.
Rumours over Khan’s death first surfaced months ago, with many of his family members alleging that they were denied access to him.
Wajahat Saeed Khan, a Pakistani journalist, now based in the United States, has now dropped an explosive claim about the well-being of the chief of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
In an interview, Wajahat claimed that “three senior military sources told him that Imran Khan is no longer with us”.
The sources in question were, however, unable to independently verify the information and had only heard about it through informal channels, the journalist clarified, as reported by News18.
The 73-year-old cricketer-turned-politician has been lodged in Adiala Jail since 2023 with multiple cases against him. His party, PTI, has repeatedly claimed that authorities have prevented him from meeting his family members. It also claim that he is not being provided with adequate medical treatment for his health issues, including an eye-related condition.
Khan’s family members and his fellow party colleagues claimed on Tuesday that they were being denied access to the former premier as concerns over his health intensified.
While these claims have been made repeatedly, the Pakistan government has made no move to produce Khan for inspection, by at least journalists and rights activists.
Under the circumstances, if Wajahat’s claim turns out to be true, Pakistan will witness the worst turmoil in recent times.
PTI leader and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Sohail Afridi claimed that “over two million people were ready to take to the streets”. Targeting Pakistan’s government, he warned that “the anger among Pakistan’s youth could become impossible to contain”.
“We neither politicise Imran Khan’s health, nor has Imran Khan ever raised the issue of his health to seek any kind of relief,” Afridi had said.
The PTI has also announced a long march to Islamabad on September 27, while warning of protests even before then if Imran Khan’s family and party colleagues are denied access to meet him.
The Pakistani government is under tremendous pressure over Khan’s prolonged incarceration and concerns about his health — not only at home but from outside the nation. A bipartisan group of 13 US lawmakers wrote to US secretary of state Marco Rubio, urging him to raise Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi’s detention conditions directly with Islamabad.
The letter cited a UN Special Rapporteur’s concerns over the former PM’s prolonged solitary confinement and claims about his well-being.
