Uzma Khanum, sister of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, has confirmed that the PTI founder is in good health. She made the statement after being allowed to meet Imran Khan inside Adiala Jail on Tuesday, amid growing concerns over his wellbeing.
“Imran Khan’s health is perfectly fine. However, he was very angry and said that they are subjecting him to mental torture,” Khanum said.
According to Dawn News, Uzma arrived at the jail along with several PTI supporters before being granted permission to visit him. She expressed relief over finally being able to see her brother, saying she was “happy to finally receive permission for the meeting,” and noted that she would address the media after leaving the jail.
Supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) launched large-scale protests in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. Authorities have imposed Section 144 as a response to the planned demonstrations outside the Islamabad High Court and Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, where Khan has been held since August 2023.
What is the current situation in Pakistan?
PTI leaders claim they have repeatedly been denied access to their incarcerated founding chairman, prompting the party to launch demonstrations outside both Adiala Jail and the Islamabad High Court (IHC). As per reporting by Dawn, the protest plan was confirmed even as authorities introduced new restrictions on public gatherings.
PTI leader Asad Qaiser told the publication that lawmakers from both houses of parliament would begin their protest outside the IHC before marching towards the jail. “It has been decided to hold protests because IHC has failed to implement its order and the Adiala jail administration is not willing to implement the court orders,” Qaiser said, as quoted by Dawn.
He further stated that he would address a public gathering in Quetta on Tuesday, while advocate Gohar Ali Khan and other senior PTI leaders would lead demonstrations in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Islamabad’s order prohibits “all kinds of gatherings of five or more persons, processions/rallies and demonstrations at any public place within the Revenue Limits of District Islamabad, including the Red Zone.
It added that the ban will remain until January 18, 2026, noting the the need to prevent “threats to public peace, tranquillity and maintenance of law and order.”
In Rawalpindi, officials imposed a three-day restriction due to “imminent threats” around sensitive areas and critical infrastructure, explaining intelligence reports warning of attempts to disrupt law and order and launch violent actions.
Speculation about his health condition
Over the last week, there are immense speculation over Khan’s health and unverified reports claiming that he is dead. This intensified after his family and PTI leaders claimed they were denied contact for more than three weeks.
Khan’s son and sister have publicly demanded proof that he is alive in the last week. His family claims their requests to see him, even with court-approved access, went unanswered.
“There have been no phone calls, no meetings and no proof of life. Me and my brother have had no contact with our father,” Khan’s son Kasim stated in a post on X, adding the former premier has been “held for 845 days and kept in solitary confinement for the past six weeks in a death cell with zero transparency.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has also alleged that no one has been allowed to meet Khan or his wife Bushra Bibi since October 27.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Senator Khurram Zeeshan offered a counter-point on Saturday—contending that the former prime minister was alive and currently lodged in Adiala jail. He claimed that Khan was being kept in isolation as a tactic to pressure him into leaving Pakistan.
Corruption sentence
Khan is currently serving a 14-year sentence in a corruption case, one of several charges he maintains were fabricated to eliminate him from politics, a claim the military leadership denies.