ISLAMABAD: Imran Khan, the imprisoned ex-prime minister and founding chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), issued a stern warning from behind bars on Wednesday, declaring that ‘establishment’ should be held directly responsible if any harm comes to him whilst he remains incarcerated.”
In a message posted to his official X account, quoting conversations with family members and solicitors during a visit to Adiala Jail, Khan claimed that his ‘deteriorating treatment’ was being orchestrated at the behest of establishment and Jail Superintendent.
He claimed that a certain official and Jail Superintendent are carrying out these actions on establishment’s orders. “There is absolutely no question of bowing down, even if I must spend the rest of my life in prison,” Khan stated. “I convey this same message to the people of Pakistan: under no circumstances should you submit to this tyrannical system.”
He insisted that the time for negotiations had passed, calling instead for an uprising against what he described as a “fascist regime.” He alleged that both he and his wife had endured increased hardship in recent days.
“The television in her (Bushra Bibi’s) cell has been switched off. All fundamental human rights and basic prisoner entitlements, both hers and mine, have been suspended. This must be accounted for,” he said.
He also linked his wife’s treatment to a personal grudge held by establishment.
Describing the conditions inside Adiala Jail, Khan said he is being subjected to inhumane treatment, while convicted militants and violent criminals are afforded better facilities. “No matter what they do, I did not bow before this oppression before, nor will I do so now.”
The former prime minister also accused Punjab Chief Minister and Interior Minister Naqvi of fostering an environment of “fascism” in Punjab over the past two years.
“Democracy has been extinguished and all political activity suppressed,” he said, though he welcomed the recent mobilisation of PTI MNAs and MPAs in Lahore as “a positive political development.”
Calling for unity within his embattled party, Khan issued a strict directive to PTI members to refrain from airing internal grievances publicly.
“My instruction is firm: whether a senior office-holder or a junior member, no one is to express internal differences on social media, electronic media, print media, or any other platform,” he said. “Focus exclusively on the protest movement so that fundamental human rights are restored in Pakistan.”
Khan continued that party members who fail to participate in the movement will be personally dealt with by him, even from prison. He urged all PTI members and office-bearers to amplify his messages on social media: “Retweet my messages on Twitter (now X), and ensure they are shared as widely as possible.”
He also called on the party to decide Senate nominations through mutual consultation.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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