In a dramatic development ahead of a nationwide campaign planned for August 5, former prime minister Imran Khan’s sons, Sulaiman and Qasim, are expected to join rallies in Pakistan calling for their father’s release.
Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at the Adiala Jail in £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the May 9, 2023 protests.
His sons, two British nationals, have largely remained outside the public eye. They are now reportedly planning to return to Pakistan after lobbying efforts in the United States, according to their aunt Aleema Khan.
The campaign, which marks two years since the former prime minister was jailed, is being positioned as a renewed push by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to reignite public and international pressure.
“This is no longer just about politics - it’s about justice,” Aleema told local media, adding that the brothers will “stand with their father” and “the people of Pakistan.”
The son’s have been slowly gaining momentum in the media, even appearing on a recent podcast to speak out against the “inhumane conditions” under which he was being unlawfully held.
However, their entry into Pakistan’s increasingly fraught political landscape is unlikely to be smooth.
“Given the consistent hard line that the Pakistani state has taken on the Imran Khan issue, there’s a good chance they could try to stop his sons from advocating for their father on Pakistani soil,” Michael Kugelman, Senior Fellow at Asia Pacific Foundation said while speaking to Business Recorder.
“But this also presents a conundrum for the Pakistani authorities. Arresting Khan’s sons could backfire on the state and provoke major outcries not only in Pakistan but also outside of it.”
Government officials, including PM’s adviser Rana Sanaullah, have warned that the sons could be arrested if they participate in what authorities deem a “violent protest.”
Jemima Goldsmith, Khan’s former wife slammed the comments, accusing the government of threatening to detain her sons due to a “personal vendetta”.
“My children aren’t allowed to speak on the phone to their father Imran Khan,” Goldsmith posted on X.
“He [Imran] has been in solitary confinement in prison for nearly two years. Pakistan’s government has now said if they go there to try to see him, they too will be arrested and put behind bars. This doesn’t happen in a democracy or a functioning state…this isn’t politics. It’s a personal vendetta.”
Imran Khan’s sons legal vulnerability is further complicated by their British citizenship, which leaves them open to deportation or immediate detention if visa regulations are violated.
“The Pakistani leadership doesn’t want the country and especially the world to be giving Khan attention. But trying to impede his sons’ advocacy, especially through arrest, could make Khan the global headline that the Pakistani state would prefer he not be. In that sense, there’s also the possibility that the two young men are given the space to protest, with the government hoping that they’ll eventually leave and then the whole thing will be forgotten,” Kugelman said.
While their presence may provide symbolic weight to PTI’s cause, analysts say the path to any meaningful change remains steep.
Past PTI-led protests have been met with mass arrests and media blackouts. Human rights groups have flagged the crackdown on dissent, while international attention has remained limited.
Whether Sulaiman and Qasim can galvanise public sentiment or shift the political calculus remains uncertain.
What is clear, however, is that the August campaign will test both the government’s tolerance for dissent and PTI’s ability to mobilise beyond symbolism.
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