Former prime minister Imran Khan’s sisters and lawyers were again denied permission to meet him at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail on Tuesday, despite existing Islamabad High Court directions concerning access for his family and legal team.
Advocate Awais Younas Chaudhry told Dawn that Khan’s sisters and six lawyers reached the prison seeking a meeting but were not allowed to see the incarcerated PTI founder. His sisters reportedly remained outside the jail beyond 6:30pm without receiving confirmation that a meeting had been approved.
According to Chaudhry, the Islamabad High Court has designated Tuesdays for meetings with Khan’s family and lawyers and Thursdays for meetings involving party leaders. He alleged that refusing Tuesday’s meeting violated those directions.
The latest episode adds to a long-running dispute over access to Khan during his imprisonment. In June, the IHC separately directed authorities to arrange a meeting between Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi and their legal counsel within seven days after his lawyer said repeated restrictions were preventing him from obtaining instructions needed for appeals. The chief justice described denial of access to legal counsel as unfortunate and said it could impede the administration of justice.
There have, however, been periods when family access was permitted. On August 18, Khan’s sister Noreen Niazi met him at Adiala Jail following a Supreme Court ruling allowing weekly family meetings.
Speaking outside the prison after Tuesday’s unsuccessful attempt, Aleema Khan criticised the authorities and made a series of political and judicial allegations. She also said she had advised Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to continue demanding Khan’s transfer to Shifa International Hospital and progress on his pending bail matters. Her statements represent her and PTI’s position.
The development comes amid a separate legal dispute over Khan’s hospital treatment. PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram criticised the Federal Constitutional Court’s decision to seek the Supreme Court record concerning Khan’s proposed hospital transfer, arguing that the matter was already pending before the apex court.
Khan’s access to relatives and lawyers has repeatedly become the subject of litigation and political disagreement. PTI maintains that restrictions breach his legal and constitutional rights, while authorities have previously cited prison and security considerations in disputes surrounding visits.
The latest development is significant because the reported denial involves both family members and lawyers on a day designated for such meetings under the existing IHC arrangement.
No new court ruling changing that access arrangement was identified in the latest report. The immediate question is therefore whether authorities will facilitate subsequent meetings or whether the dispute will once again return to court.
