Thousands of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf supporters gathered outside Adiala Jail on Wednesday as rumours swirled about the whereabouts of Imran Khan. The former Prime Minister of Pakistan has been incarcerated in Rawalpindi for more than two years in connection with a corruption case. Unverified reports about his death have now sparked a furious outcry — with PTI members reportedly attempting to storm the jail. His sisters have also launched a protest and called for investigation after they were “brutally assaulted by the police” while trying to visit Khan last week.
Multiple social media handles from Balochistan and Afghanistan have amplified claims that Khan may have been assassinated — laying the blame squarely with Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir and the ISI. The rumours came even as his three sisters (Noreen Niazi, Aleema Khan and Uzma Khan) remained outside Adiala Jail with PTI supporters. They have sought a probe after being denied a meeting with Khan for nearly a month and ‘assaulted’ by officials.
“We peacefully protested over concerns for his health condition. We neither blocked roads nor obstructed public movement, nor engaged in any unlawful conduct. Yet, without warning or provocation, the streetlights in the area were abruptly switched off, deliberately casting the scene into darkness. What followed was a brutal and orchestrated assault by Punjab police personnel. At the age of 71, I was seized by my hair, thrown violently to the ground, and dragged across the road, sustaining visible injuries,” his sister Noreen Niazi wrote in a letter to Punjab police chief Usman Anwar.
Where is Imran Khan?
Supports of Khan have since gathered en masse outside the prison — raising slogans against his arrest. According to a Dawn report, the PTI led an hours-long sit-in protest outside the jail around midnight on Tuesday over Khan’s sisters being denied a meeting. The protest was live-streamed via social media platforms and eventually wrapped up at the request of Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen leader Allama Raja Nasir.
“Who knows, maybe Imran has been shifted. Why are they not letting us meet him?” his sister Aleema Khan reportedly said during the live-stream.
Reports indicate that the Shehbaz Sharif government may have imposed an unofficial ‘ban’ against meetings with the former PM over the past few weeks. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has also claimed that Imran Khan is being kept in complete isolation and solitary confinement in a high-security “death cell” at Adiala Jail.
Death rumours explode
Several social media handles have now claimed without evidence that Khan may have been passed away. One influential handle called Afghanistan Defense cited ‘sources within the Pakistani Army’ to claim that Khan had actually been killed “mysteriously in prison” some 17 days ago. A social media post on X added that PTI supporters were now attempting to breach Adiala Jail in order to obtain information about their detained leader.
It is however pertinent to note that no official confirmation has come about the health or whereabouts of Imran Khan. He was last seen in public towards the end of June while making a court appearance. Meanwhile the Islamabad High Court had on October 24 ordered the implementation of its earlier directives regarding jail visits for the PTI founder.
107 cases against Imran Khan
According to a Dawn report, the Lahore High Court had also revived a writ petition from the jailed politician on Tuesday which sought consolidation of all cases against him. Chief Justice Aalia Neelum had accepted an application submitted on Khan’s behalf requesting the restoration of the petition. A law officer informed the bench during an earlier appearance that 107 cases linked to the May 9 violence were still pending against the PTI founder.
Khan had reportedly approached the court in 2023 (before his conviction in the Toshakhana reference) arguing that the FIRs were politically motivated and that many involved overlapping accusations across Punjab. The petition also noted that multiple hearings had been fixed on the same day in different districts — making it impossible for him to appear before several courts simultaneously. It had requested consolidation to ensure practical access to justice.
