 "Where is Imran Khan? Why are his death rumours circulating online again?")
Has former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan been “killed” in jail? Rumours of his death are again circulating on social media. The cricketer-turned-politician has been in jail for more than two years in several cases, including corruption.
The unverified rumours of Khan’s death have surfaced amid his sisters’ allegations that they are not being allowed to meet the former PM, who is currently lodged at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. He has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.
This is not the first time that such speculations have emerged about the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) founder.
We take a look.
Is Imran Khan dead?
The “death” of Imran Khan triggered chatter on social media after an account on X named Afghanistan Times claimed on Wednesday (November 26) that the 72-year-old has been “mysteriously killed” and his “body has been moved out of the prison.”
In a follow-up post, the account claimed that thousands of Khan’s supporters and PTI members are trying to “break into” the Adiala Jail to get information about their “leader’s condition”.
The unsubstantiated posts grew traction on social media, with #ImranKhan trending on X.
An account on the social media platform named “Ministry of Foreign Affairs Baluchistan” shared a purported picture of Khan lying on a stretcher. It claimed, citing “reports”, that the former PM has been “killed” by Field Marshal Asim Munir and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan’s spy agency.
The veracity of the image shared by the account has not been corroborated by any credible news source.
However, such posts have generated buzz on social media.
Quick Reads
View All“There are reports and rumors claiming that #ImranKhan has been killed in prison by the Pakistani military. It is also said that Imran Khan family has stated that they have not been allowed to meet him for about a month. Where is Imran Khan?” a user asked on X.
This is not the first time that rumours have spread on social media about Khan’s "demise". In May, a document bearing the letterhead of the Government of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that claimed that Khan passed away in judicial custody and the circumstances around his death are being investigated had gone viral.
As the rumour swirled on social media, Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had to issue a press release, saying the document is “fake” and urging the public to “reject irresponsible behaviour.”
ALSO READ: Did Imran Khan’s spiritual wife, Bushra Bibi, practise ‘black magic’?
‘No contact with Imran Khan for weeks’
Imran Khan’s sisters, who camped outside Adiala Jail, where he is incarcerated, have alleged manhandling by security forces.
Noreen Niazi, the PTI founder’s sister, has submitted a formal complaint to Punjab Inspector General of Police Dr Usman Anwar against the “brutal assault” of protesters outside the prison last week, reported Dawn.
Khan’s sisters and PTI members held a protest after not being allowed to meet the PTI founder.
The party alleged that Aleema Khan, Dr Uzma Khan and Niazi were “sitting peacefully” outside the jail when they were manhandled and “violently detained” by police.
In a post on X on Monday, the PTI said Niazi had filed a complaint with the Punjab IG over the “brutal assault and unlawful detention of peaceful citizens”.
In the two-page letter shared by the party, Noreen described the incident as “deeply disturbing”. She said the violence was “brutal and orchestrated” and came without provocation.
According to her, she and her sisters had been denied access to see Imran without justification for weeks, leading them to “peacefully and democratically protest” over concerns for his condition. She said that members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet, lawyers and party workers were also present during the protest.
“At the age of 71, I was seized by my hair, thrown violently to the ground, and dragged across the road, sustaining visible injuries,” Niazi alleged.
She also claimed that other women were slapped and dragged, adding that “peaceful citizens” were forced into vans, only to be later abandoned at remote areas in the middle of the night.
“The fact that ministers and elected officials from another federating unit were subjected to this violence further underscores a dangerous erosion of political comity and the misuse of provincial police power to suppress legitimate political expression,” she said, as per Dawn.
Where is Imran Khan?
In September, the former Pakistan PM wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, describing his imprisonment in a 9-by-11-foot “cage.”
“I have endured continued solitary confinement,” Khan wrote. “All access to books and newspapers has been denied to me.”
The Pakistan government has reportedly placed an undeclared ban on meetings with the PTI founder for over one month.
In July, Imran Khan asked his party members to hold Pakistan Army chief Munir accountable in case “anything happened” to him in jail, after complaining of “harsh treatment” during incarceration.
With inputs from agencies
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