Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Khurram Zeeshan on Saturday rejected widespread rumours circulating on social media claiming that former prime minister Imran Khan had died in custody. He said Khan is “alive and currently lodged in Adiala jail”.
Zeeshan alleged that the former prime minister has been kept in quarantine as a “pressure tactic” to force him to leave Pakistan. He claimed that authorities were not permitting any pictures or videos of Khan to be released because “the government is scared of his popularity”.
Rumours of Khan’s death intensified earlier this week after several Afghan social media accounts claimed he had been murdered in a Rawalpindi jail. The speculation grew further following reports that Pakistani authorities had not allowed Khan’s sisters to meet him for nearly a month despite court orders.
“It’s very unfortunate,” Zeeshan said. “He has been kept in isolation for almost a month and his family, his lawyers, and even senior PTI leadership have not been allowed to meet him. This is a gross violation of human rights. It looks like they are trying to force something on him.”
The PTI has demanded immediate access to Khan and called for transparency regarding condition.
