Labor Party member Baroness Alexander says discussion is timely given Imran’s ‘deteriorating social welfare’
A debate is underway in the UK House of Lords over the detention and health condition of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan.
Imran has been imprisoned since August 2023 and is currently serving a sentence in Adiala Prison in a £190 million corruption case. He also faces ongoing trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) related to the May 9, 2023 protests.
Launching the debate, Labor Party member Baroness Alexander of Cleveden said the discussion was timely given Imran’s “deteriorating well-being”, citing concerns about his health, conditions of detention, access to medical care, denial of family visits and recurring questions about access to justice.
The debate comes a day after Kasim Khan, son of the PTI founder, addressed the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), urging the body to intervene and put pressure on the Pakistani government for the immediate release of his father.
Read: Kasim calls for HRC intervention to end Imran’s persecution and detention immediately
The sons of the former prime minister have not seen him since November 2022, following an assassination attempt. They said they applied for a visa in January this year, but have not yet received a response.
However, the PTI founder was allowed to call his sons from Adiala jail on Eid, chatting with them for around 25-30 minutes. During the call, his sons inquired about his health, while Imran expressed his joy at being able to speak to them on the occasion of the celebration. He was taken out of the compound to a special room for the roll call and then returned to the compound.
Last week, Jemima Goldsmith, Imran’s ex-wife, made a direct appeal to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to allow her sons to visit their father in prison.
In response, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that Imran’s sons did not need visas to travel to Pakistan to meet their father, to which Jemima responded that the government was denying visas to their sons, in an attempt to deprive them of British protection in the event of possible arrest upon arrival in Pakistan.
