‘Our father being slowly killed’: Imran Khan’s sons accuse Pakistan’s Asim Munir of vendetta
The sons of jailed former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan have accused army chief Asim Munir of pursuing a “personal vendetta” against their father, alleging that his prison conditions amount to mental and physical torture.Speaking to The Guardian, Kasim Khan, 27, and Sulaiman Khan, 29, said they were “deeply” concerned about the health of their 73-year-old father, who has been held at Adiala prison in Rawalpindi since his arrest in 2023.Khan is serving a 14-year sentence in a corruption case. His sons said they had not been allowed to speak to him for more than six months and had also been prevented from travelling from the UK to Pakistan to seek his release.The allegations come ahead of a Supreme Court ruling on Wednesday in a case alleging that the Pakistan government has failed to comply with a court order allowing Khan private hospital treatment for an eye condition and permitting family visits and communication.Sulaiman alleged that his father had been denied human contact, new books, access to family and an independent doctor. He also said Khan’s eye condition had been neglected for months, potentially resulting in severe loss of sight in one eye.“It’s very clear this is being driven by personal grudge,” Sulaiman told The Guardian, alleging that Khan was being treated harshly on Munir’s orders.Khan had reportedly demoted Munir during his tenure as prime minister, and tensions between the two were widely known. Munir became army chief in 2022, while Khan’s political conflict with the military establishment intensified.Kasim alleged that the family believed their father was being “slowly killed” in prison and said they feared restrictions on him could become harsher when international pressure eased.The allegations follow a recent dispute over Khan’s medical treatment. Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that he should be taken to a private hospital for treatment of a blood clot in a retinal vein. His family said the condition had severely affected the sight in his right eye.Khan was instead briefly taken to a government hospital, where he received injections before being declared fit to return to prison, according to The Guardian.The Pakistan government has rejected the allegations, calling them “fake propaganda”. It said Khan was being kept in adequate conditions and had access to home-cooked food, nuts, bottled water, exercise equipment, family visits and regular medical examinations.“The government of Pakistan categorically rejects allegations that the convicted prisoner is being subjected to punitive solitary confinement, cruelty or deprivation,” it said.The United Nations has previously said Khan’s prolonged detention violates international law, while the UN special rapporteur on torture has said his solitary confinement and detention conditions could amount to psychological torture.
