Something irreversible being hidden: Sons fear for Imran Khan in death cell

It has been 47 days of silence as the wait for families and supporters of Pakistan's former imprisoned Prime Minister Imran Khan stretches close to seven weeks. Forget meeting him, no news of his well-being has emerged from Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail, where the former PM has been kept in a "death cell", according to his son Kasim Khan. These developments come amid rumours and reports of the former prime minister's death spreading across the city and throwing the Asim Munir-led establishment into chaos.

Fearing the worst, Khan's sons allege that authorities are concealing "something irreversible" about his condition, after more than three weeks with no evidence that he is still alive, according to news agency Reuters.

While the Munir-led establishment has repeatedly blocked court-ordered prison visits and rumours swirl about possible transfers of Khan, his son Kasim told Reuters that the family has had no direct or verifiable contact with him, despite a judicial order mandating weekly meetings.

Reacting to the uncertainty, Imran Khan's ex-wife and mother of Kasim and Sulaiman Khan, Jemima Goldsmith, claimed on X: "They're not even allowed to speak to him on the phone. No one is."

"Today, we have no verifiable information at all about his condition," one of Imran Khan's sons told Reuters. "Our greatest fear is that something irreversible is being hidden from us."

"Not knowing whether your father is safe, injured, or even alive is a form of psychological torture," he said, adding that there has been no independently verified communication with the former PM for the past couple of months.'

Last week, Kasim Khan said that his father had been under arrest for 845 and he had been kept in a "death cell" with "zero transparency". "My father has been under arrest for 845 days. For the past six weeks, he has been kept in solitary confinement in a death cell with zero transparency," posted Imran's son Kasim Khan on November 27.

"His sisters have been denied every visit, even with clear court orders allowing access. There have been no phone calls, no meetings and no proof of life. Me and my brother have had no contact with our father," posted Kasim on X. He claimed that the "absolute blackout" was a "deliberate attempt" in preventing his family from knowing whether he was safe.

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