ISLAMABAD:
A low-key meeting between senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi sparked a debate over possible indirect contacts between the opposition party and the powers that be and also raised questions about internal communication and coordination within the party after it emerged that the family of the party’s founding president Imran Khan had no prior knowledge of the engagement.
A report circulating on
Aleema Khan quickly dismissed the allegations regarding X, clarifying that no member of Imran Khan’s family was present at the meeting and that the family was not informed beforehand. His denial, however, inadvertently confirmed the existence of the meeting, setting off a chain of questions that brought the meeting to the center of public attention.
Rumors of a meeting between lawyer Gohar Ali Khan and the interior minister at the former’s home had been doing the rounds for several days, although neither the PTI nor lawyer Gohar had confirmed it during this period.
The matter remained publicly ignored until Aleema Khan’s statement brought it into the limelight, after which Sohail Afridi’s name also came up in connection with the meeting and was later acknowledged by senior PTI leaders in response to questions.
The Express PK Press Club contacted lawyer Gohar Ali Khan for confirmation of the reported meeting and its agenda. He confirmed that the meeting took place and reiterated that no member of Imran Khan’s family was present. However, he did not respond to other questions regarding the agenda or detailed points of discussion.
Meanwhile, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas, responding to queries from The Express PK Press Club, said he had personally contacted lawyer Gohar, who confirmed the meeting and the presence of Sohail Afridi. He said the meeting took place on May 14 and was strictly related to law and order matters, including the security situation in Bannu and broader law and order concerns.
He further said that Imran Khan’s family was not informed about the meeting as the matter did not concern them, adding that lawyer Gohar, as a member of the party’s senior leadership, was authorized to engage in such discussions. According to him, participants maintained that the discussion remained limited to issues of security and public order.
The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister, in an article on He categorically stated that no political discussions took place during the meeting, adding that reports suggesting otherwise were incorrect.
The security context in Bannu cited by Afridi is based on a recent and serious incident. On the night of May 9, five days before the meeting, a devastating attack hit a police outpost in Bannu district when a vehicle laden with explosives rammed the post, followed by a coordinated attack involving heavy weapons and drones.
The attack was claimed by Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, a newly emerged armed group. In the following days, a joint operation of the Pakistan Army, police and Counter Terrorism Department was launched in the area, killing 16 terrorists, including two commanders. It is in this immediate context that PTI representatives described the May 14 meeting as focused on law and order and security coordination.
Even though the KP chief minister’s clarification related to the nature of the meeting, the development nevertheless attracted attention in political circles due to questions regarding the timing and limited public awareness about it.
The development comes amid prolonged concerns over Imran Khan’s health during his incarceration at Adiala Prison.
Khan has been taken to PIMS several times in recent months for treatment of a deteriorating eye condition, with his legal team filing petitions in the Islamabad High Court seeking access to specialist care and the presence of his personal doctors.
A follow-up examination by a joint medical board in March found improvement in his condition, although the family disputed the government’s assessment and insisted that no medical decisions should be made without their consent.
The episode also drew renewed attention to a recurring tension between the Khan family and senior party leaders over internal communication and consultation.
In February, Aleema Khan publicly reprimanded the party leadership for its handling of the medical situation, objecting to what she described as decisions made without the family’s knowledge.
Gohar himself acknowledged at the time a lack of communication within the leadership, while stressing that efforts to free Imran Khan remained coordinated.
The latest episode in which a meeting with the Interior Minister took place and was only revealed through a social media post appears to reflect this same unresolved tension.
