Pakistan Government Rejects Claims of Mistreatment of Imran Khan in Jail

Pakistan’s government has rejected allegations from the family and political party of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan that he is being subjected to harsh detention conditions, mental torture and inadequate medical care.

The Ministry of Information said the accusations were not supported by prison or medical records. In a written response, the ministry said Khan was being held as a convicted prisoner serving sentences imposed by courts after judicial proceedings, rather than under a government detention order.

The government’s statement followed claims from Khan’s family and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf that authorities had violated a Supreme Court order by taking him to a government hospital instead of Shifa International Hospital, where the court had directed that he receive a medical examination.

Khan’s sister, Uzma Khan, said at a news conference that she was at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad when her brother was brought there overnight. She said Khan told her that he had been kept in solitary confinement, which she described as a form of mental torture.

Senior PTI leader Suhail Afridi also accused authorities of disregarding the Supreme Court’s instructions.

Khan’s personal physician, Dr Faisal Sultan, said he had gone to Shifa International Hospital and waited for the former prime minister until early Friday. He was later informed that Khan had been taken back to Adiala prison in Rawalpindi.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Khan was returned to prison after doctors examined him and declared him medically fit.

The government rejected claims that Khan was being denied meaningful contact with relatives. The ministry said he had received more than 900 visits from family members, lawyers, doctors, political representatives and other authorised visitors since his imprisonment in 2023.

Officials said Khan is permitted weekly meetings with his wife and can communicate with relatives in Pakistan and abroad by telephone, landline and WhatsApp. His latest recorded call with one of his sons took place on March 21, while his sisters met him on August 18 and 19, according to the ministry.

The government also said Khan has access to books, television, home-cooked food and exercise equipment. It added that prison access cannot be used to transmit political messages.

Officials disputed claims of medical neglect, saying Khan had undergone about 30 examinations by specialists and medical boards from institutions including PIMS, Shifa International Hospital, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital.

The ministry also said Uzma Khan had acknowledged that her brother was in good health, citing a blood pressure reading of 120/80 and an improvement in his eye condition.

Authorities said Khan is housed in a seven-cell compound with sleeping, sanitation and exercise facilities and receives separately prepared meals.

The government said security concerns surrounding PTI supporters gathered near Shifa International Hospital prompted officials to use a public hospital instead.

The Supreme Court had ordered Khan to undergo an examination at Shifa by a medical board that included specialists and one of his personal physicians.

Khan has been imprisoned since 2023 after convictions in several cases. He was removed as prime minister in April 2022 following a parliamentary no-confidence vote.