Imran Khan | Pakistan

Over the past 3.5 years, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has written to X three times seeking closure of an account in PTI founder Imran Khan’s name, but received no response, it emerged on Thursday. The information came to light in a PTA report, seen by Dawn and submitted to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) today in relation to a petition against the incarcerated former premier regarding “inflammatory posts” made from an X account operated in his name. The report stated that the first request was sent on August 21, 2022, to X, and the body received no response from the social media platform. On April 18, 2024, PTA submitted another request for the blocking of Imran’s account via email. The report said that the email included “citation of relevant court orders against Imran and details of his conviction and sentence to 14, 10, and seven years in Toshakhana, cypher, and unlawful marriage cases”. However, it added that once again, no response was received from X. The report added that on November 2...

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday questioned how proceedings in the case concerning PTI founder Imran Khan’s X account could continue if authorities were denying his counsel access to him. The remarks were made by Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, who was presiding over a hearing on a petition against the incarcerated former premier regarding “inflammatory posts” made from an X account operated in Imran’s name. During today’s hearing, PTI leader Salman Akram Raja, who is representing Imran in the case, told the court that he had not been able to meet his client for consultation. “The court has received responses from Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and jail authorities,” Justice Tahir said. Addressing Raja, Justice Tahir said that “final arguments in the case will be presented on February 24 if you meet (Imran)”. The judge then directed Raja to submit a detailed response in court in connection with the contempt petition over the denial of meetings with the PTI founder. The court also issued i...

An anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi has turned down a request by lawyers seeking permission to hold a legal consultation with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan in connection with the May 9 GHQ attack case.

PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan met his wife Bushra Bibi at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail on Wednesday, sources said.

LAHORE: A local court on Monday granted pre-arrest bail to a qawwal after he was booked in a case for performing a song associated with ex-premier Imran Khan during a government-sponsored cultural event. In the first information report (FIR), the complainant, Shalimar Gardens in-charge Zameerul Hasan, alleged that qawwal Faraz Amjad Khan gave the event “political colour” as the song mentioned “Qaidi No. 804” in reference to former prime minister Imran Khan. Additional District and Sessions Judge Shazaib Dar took up the bail application filed by the artist today, who appeared before the court. Amjad’s counsel submitted that the petitioner has no affiliation with any political party and that he performed the song at the request of participants at the cultural programme. He further requested the court to grant pre-arrest bail to the singer as he wanted to join the investigation to “prove his innocence”. After preliminary arguments, the judge allowed the bail and sought the case record from the police. The Baghba...

LAHORE: The police booked a singer for performing a song titled “Qaidi No 804” during a government-sponsored cultural event at the Shalimar Gardens here on Sunday. The suspect, a Qawwal, has been accused of giving the event ‘political colour’ as the song was associated with the jailed PTI founder Imran Khan. In the FIR, the complainant, the Shalimar Gardens in charge, Mr Zameerul Hasan, alleged that the singer, Faraz Khan, deliberately tried to exploit the cultural event and instigate people, as the song was associated with a particular political party. He said a music and cultural night was organised by the Walled City of Lahore Authority, which was a non-political event. However, he alleged the singer and his companions sang the song, associated with the PTI leader, on the demand of some audience. He told the police that the suspect should have kept in his mind that the event was open to the public, and was attended by people having affiliations with different political parties. The controversial song posed...

PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, on Monday filed separate appeals with the Islamabad High Court (IHC) challenging their conviction in the Toshakhana 2 case. A special court on December 20 sentenced Imran and Bushra to 17 years imprisonment in the case, which pertained to the purchase of an expensive Bulgari jewellery set, gifted to Imran by the Saudi crown prince during an official visit in May 2021, at a throwaway price. During the proceedings, the prosecution contended that the PTI founder retained the jewellery set, valued at approximately Rs80 million, after paying only Rs2.9m. According to copies of the appeal available with Dawn, the couple’s lawyers contended that the sentencing was politically motivated, arguing, “The overarching objective of the present prosecution appears to be the continued incarceration of the appellant, thereby preventing his participation in national politics and curtailing his political role and influence.” Furthermore, it was noted th...

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi will challenge the verdicts in the Toshakhana-II case by filing appeals in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said on Monday that meetings with incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan would remain suspended till February 8. “Meetings with Khan will remain suspended till Feb 8,” the minister said while speaking on Geo News’ show Capital Talk, in reply to a question by the show’s host about whether meetings with Imran would remain suspended. As court-ordered prison visits stay blocked, Imran’s family and party have expressed concerns about the conditions in which he is being kept inside the prison. A United Nations’ special rapporteur has also warned that Imran is being held in conditions that could amount to inhuman or degrading treatment. Chaudhry maintained that the prison is “not the headquarters of a political party”, and criticised the PTI for “spreading venom against institutions and leaders of the institutions“. The PML-N leader said that regular meetings were held between PTI leaders and its founder in Adiala jail in the past, and the government had no issues. Ho...

ISLAMABAD: A special court on Saturday sentenced PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to 17 years imprisonment in the Toshakhana-2 case. The case pertains to the purchase of an expensive Bulgari jewellery set, gifted to Imran by the Saudi crown prince during an official visit in May 2021, at a throwaway price. During the proceedings, the prosecution contended that the PTI founder retained the jewellery set, valued at approximately Rs80 million, after paying only Rs2.9m. The verdict was delivered by Special Judge Central Shahrukh Arjumand during a hearing held at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, where Imran is incarcerated. Imran was sentenced to a total of 17 years in prison; he was awarded 10-year rigorous imprisonment under sections 34 (common intention) and 409 (criminal breach of trust) of the Pakistan Penal Code, and seven years under Section 5(2) (criminal misconduct by public servants) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Bushra Bibi was also sentenced to a total of 17 years’ imprisonment under the...

A special court on Saturday sentenced former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to 17 years’ imprisonment each after finding them guilty in a corruption case linked to state gifts.

United Nations’ special rapporteur warned on Friday that PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan is being held in conditions that could amount to inhuman or degrading treatment. In September, his legal team approached the rapporteur to urge the Pakistani government to cease the alleged mistreatment of the couple. Prime Minister’s Aide Rana Ihsan Afzal, however, dismissed the concerns of the UN rapporteur and said Imran was being kept “according to prison rules and the jail manual”. “His children have access and he should schedule [a call] and put in the appropriate request. There is no issue or obstacle from the government of Pakistan,” said the premier’s aide. He added that the PTI founder is being provided facilities “greater than his rights” as a B-class prisoner. “He has the facilities of exercise available, good food is available and ample space is also available.” The UN official, Alice Jill Edwards, urged Pakistan to take immediate and effective action to address reports of the 73-year-old’s i...

Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Information and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan said on Wednesday that the government is considering relocating PTI founder Imran Khan from Adiala Jail to a prison in another province, citing continued protests by party supporters outside the facility.

Rawalpindi - Aleema Khan and two other sisters of Imran Khan, founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, on Tuesday evening started a sit-in near Adiala jail along with the party workers after they were denied to meet the ex-prime minister.

The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday adopted a resolution to ban incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and his party for being “anti-state”. The development comes days after Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry assailed Khan for creating and spreading an “anti-army” rhetoric, stating that such narratives were now out of the realm of politics and had become a “national security threat”. Since then a war of words continued between the leaders of ruling party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and PTI over the presser, with Defence Minister Khawaja Asif saying Imran had used “harsh language” in the past for members of the opposition, insisting that the party had no right to object to the comments by the military’s spokesman, while the opposition party emphatically deplored “ridiculous” remarks by the military spokesperson against ex-premier Imran Khan, saying he was “not a security threat”. PML-N MPA Tahir Pervaiz move...

The PTI emphatically deplored “ridiculous” remarks by the military spokesperson against ex-premier Imran Khan, saying he was “not a security threat”, and lamented the weakening of democracy in the country following the passage of recent constitutional amendments. In a blistering press conference on Friday, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry assailed Imran for creating and spreading an “anti-army” rhetoric, stating that such narratives were now out of the realm of politics and had become a “national security threat”. Responding to the DG ISPR’s accusations in a press conference today at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said: “Do not drive away the people of Pakistan, they stand with Imran Khan and the PTI. Imran Khan is not a national security threat. He has kept the people united.” Raja said there were many narratives in the country, including along ethnic and sectarian lines, yet Imran had rejected all of them to ...

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Friday assailed incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan for creating and spreading an “anti-army” rhetoric, stating that such narratives were now out of the realm of politics and had become a “national security threat”. At the beginning of his press conference in Rawalpindi, he talked about a “creeping national security threat” that had become necessary for the military to address. “That threat emanates from a delusional mindset of a delusional person who has become captive to his own ego, thinking that his wishes are bigger than those of the state of Pakistan,” Lt Gen Chaudhry said, in an apparent reference to incarcerated PTI founder, Imran Khan. “His ego, his wishes, and frustrations have grown to such an extent that he thinks that the world would cease to exist without him.” The DG ISPR added that it would be “a bit strange to see it coming from me, but the narrative that person is pushing is no more about politics now but...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was prevented for the ninth time by prison authorities from meeting PTI founder Imran Khan at Adiala Jail on Thursday. Imran’s sister Uzma Khan met the party founder in prison on Tuesday after weeks of effort, with CM Afridi and other party leaders scheduled to meet him today. The meeting took place as rumours regarding Imran’s health began circulating in local and foreign media, despite claims by the government and PTI leaders that the former prime minister was in good health. These speculations, however, gained traction due to the government’s reluctance to let visitors, including his family members and legal team, meet Imran over the past few weeks. According to a post on X by the PTI, CM Afridi went to Adiala jail to visit Imran, but access was not granted. Afridi addressed the media outside the prison after the continued lack of access. He said he would update the media on the immediate course of action — whether he would stage a sit-in or not. The PTI also...

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan on Wednesday dissolved the party’s political committee, with a plan to replace it with a smaller body. The party’s information secretary, Sheikh Waqas Akram, while talking to Dawn, confirmed that the current political committee has been dissolved and a new committee, having fewer members, will replace it. The now-dissolved committee had around 40 members. Waqas elaborated that the new committee will most likely have the party’s provincial heads, leaders of the opposition and a few more members. The party’s incarcerated founder also directed to appoint Shahid Khattak as parliamentary leader in the National Assembly. However, according to party insiders, it might not be implemented. In the past, Zartaj Gul was appointed as parliamentary leader, but this time, an excuse could be made that independent legislators cannot be appointed to the role. Moreover, Imran has authorised KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to reorganise the Insaf Lawyers Forum (ILF). PTI criticis...

In a key development in the petition seeking the suspension of the PTI founder’s X account, the Adiala Jail superintendent has firmly rejected claims that Imran Khan is operating social media from inside the prison.