The main opposition party in Pakistan has threatened a nationwide shutdown to “get rid of the government” if the authorities continue what it alleges is the mistreatment of its founder, former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has been in jail since August last year.
Ali Amin Gandapur, the chief minister of the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and a senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, issued the “warning” on Monday to the federal government and the government in Punjab province, both led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) party.
“Imran Khan is not given food. His cell’s electricity is suspended. He is not allowed to meet people. I am giving you a warning: If this continues, we are planning to close down Pakistan and get rid of this government,” he said in a video message posted on X.
Gandapur released the statement as Khan’s sisters Aleema and Uzma Khan met the incarcerated leader at Adiala Jail in Punjab’s Rawalpindi on Monday and Tuesday. They later told reporters they were worried their brother was being “mistreated” by the authorities.
On Wednesday, a message attributed to Khan was posted on his X account in which the 72-year-old politician said he was being subjected to “mental torture” in custody. “I was not allowed to go out. My doctors, family and lawyers were banned from visiting me for several weeks,” the message said.
PTI leader Sayed Zulfi Bukhari told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that the party is planning to launch a big protest in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in the coming days. “This will be the beginning of our countrywide mobilisation with the sole objective to ensure his [Khan’s] release,” he said.
Bukhari said Khan is a “brave and a courageous leader” who has “never complained about his health”.
“However, his sisters have confirmed that Khan was not allowed to meet with people for two weeks, that there was no electricity in his cell, and he was not allowed to move out or do his exercises. The food that was given to him was inadequate,” he added.
After Khan was removed from power in 2022 in a parliamentary vote of no confidence, he was charged and jailed in dozens of cases, including sedition and “terrorism”, by the government led by Sharif, who succeeded the cricketer-turned-politician. While Khan has received bail and been acquitted in several cases, he continues to remain behind bars, which the PTI says is a ploy to prevent his return to power.
Khan’s party accused the government and Pakistan’s powerful military of a campaign to keep him imprisoned. The government and the military, which once backed Khan’s political rise, denied the charges.
The PTI has repeatedly expressed concerns over Khan’s wellbeing in prison, even saying his life was in danger.
On October 15, the opposition party’s allegations were echoed by Khan’s London-based former wife Jemima Goldsmith, who, in a viral post on X, flagged some “serious and concerning developments” about the wellbeing of the father of their two sons.
“We have received reports that the authorities have now turned off the lights and electricity in his cell and he is no longer allowed to leave his cell at any time. The jail cook has been sent on leave. He is now completely isolated, in solitary confinement, literally in the dark, with no contact with the outside world,” she wrote, adding that Khan’s lawyers were concerned about his safety.
In July, a United Nations human rights working group also issued a statement, saying Khan has been arbitrarily imprisoned in violation of international law and demanding his immediate release.
The PTI’s concerns followed a government order on October 4 banning visitors at Adiala Jail due to “security concerns”. The order was issued days before Pakistan hosted the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in its capital, Islamabad, on October 15-16, which saw Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang and other leaders from the region congregate in the city.
The PTI had earlier given a call for a protest near Pakistan’s parliament building in Islamabad on October 15 to demand the release of Khan as well as to oppose a constitutional amendment that gives the parliament the power to appoint the top judge of the Supreme Court. The amendment was passed on October 21.
However, the opposition party cancelled its protest after the government sent a medical team to check on Khan in jail. The doctors saw Khan and reported he was in “good health”.
Officials at Adiala this week said Khan’s meetings with his family members, lawyers and party leaders have resumed.
Last week, Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, who had also been in jail since January, was released after she was granted bail in a case related to the illegal sale of gifts received by Khan and his government when he was in power from 2018 to 2022.
Some Pakistani analysts said the PTI’s threat of a nationwide shutdown betrays a “lack of strategy”. Majid Nizami, a political analyst based in Lahore, told Al Jazeera PTI leaders lack cohesion in terms of what their line of action should be.
“Some leaders suggest agitation, and they are trying to play the victim card of Khan being in jail and want to launch a movement. I don’t think there is any health concern, but it is merely being used to gain political mileage,” he said.
Talat Hussain, another political commentator, expressed scepticism regarding Gandapur’s video statement.
“It sounds familiar, and we have all been there, seen it and heard it all. He is trying to stay in the power struggle inside the PTI. This is all talk and no walk,” the analyst told Al Jazeera.
Nizami believes Gandapur’s threat was directed more towards PTI workers to keep them “motivated”.
“In the last six months, PTI has attempted several times to launch countrywide agitations, but it has not been able to create an impact that could put the government under pressure. That is perhaps leading to frustration within the PTI leadership,” he said.
