Lahore: Incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday asked his party members to hold Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir accountable if anything happens to him in jail.
The 72-year-old cricketer-turned-politician has been behind bars since August 2023 after he was booked in multiple cases.
Khan’s party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is gearing up to launch a massive drive from August 5 across the country to press the Shehbaz Sharif government and military establishment to free Khan.
“In recent days, the harsh treatment I face in jail has intensified. The same applies to my wife, Bushra Bibi. Even the television in her cell has been switched off. All basic rights — both human and those legally granted to prisoners — have been suspended for both of us,” Khan said in a post on X.
Stating that “there must be accountability for this,” Khan claimed that he is fully aware that a colonel and the jail superintendent are carrying out actions “on the orders of Asim Munir.”
“Therefore, I give clear instructions to my party — if anything happens to me in jail, Asim Munir must be held accountable,” Khan added.
“I am prepared to spend my entire life in prison, but there is no question of bowing before tyranny and oppression. My message to the people of Pakistan is the same — never submit to this oppressive system under any circumstances,” he reiterated and added the time for negotiations has passed — now is the time for nationwide protest.
Khan further said that even convicted murderers and terrorists are kept in better conditions than him and named a military man, who he said was “enjoying VIP treatment in jail.”
“Meanwhile, I am subjected to relentless abuse. But no matter what they do, I have never bowed before oppression — and I never will.”
Khan also reiterated a claim he had made about a month ago about how the oppression against his wife Bushra Bibi is rooted in an incident from his tenure as the prime minister.
“When Asim Munir was removed from his post of ISI chief, he attempted to send a message to Bushra Bibi through Zulfi Bukhari (PTI leader), requesting a meeting. She firmly refused,” Khan said.
“Since then, Asim Munir has had a personal grudge and is now inflicting this cruelty to emotionally break me. From the very beginning, the goal has been to pressure me by targeting Bushra Bibi,” he claimed.
Lambasting Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Khan said the duo has unleashed a climate of tyranny and fascism on the people of Punjab for the past two years.
Khan also urged every party member to set aside personal differences entirely and take part in the protest movement. “I also direct all party members and officials to personally retweet my Twitter messages and help amplify my voice to as many people as possible,” he said.
Khan’s sister Aleema Khan also told reporters that Imran Khan has given a message to the members of the PTI to hold Gen Asim Munir accountable if anything happens to him in jail.
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