 "‘Confined in cage, all left for them is to murder me, Munir mentally unstable’: Imran Khan from Rawalpindi jail")
In his first statement in weeks, former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday called Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir a “mentally unstable” tyrant and alleged that his regime was after his life.
In a statement released by his party Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI), Imran said that he had been tortured in a cage in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail and the only thing left for Munir was to get him murdered.
“There is no rule of law or constitution in our country. Instead, it is under the rule of ‘Asim Law’. Asim Munir is the most tyrannical dictator in history and is mentally unstable. The level of oppression during his tenure is unparalleled. Asim Munir is capable of doing anything to satisfy his lust for power,” said Imran.
The PTI released the statement after rumours of death swirled for weeks amid allegations of torture and concerns about his health from his family and supporters. Such speculation and concerns were fuelled by prison authorities’ refusal to grant family and PTI leaders court-mandated access to Imran. They did not cite any reason for their refusal visitation.
After PTI mobilised cadres in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and gathered for mass protests, prison authorities on Tuesday allowed Uzma Khanum, sister of Imran, to meet him in the prison. After their meeting, she said her brother was physically fine but had been tortured mentally.
“Imran Khan’s health is perfectly fine. However, he was very angry and said that they are subjecting him to mental torture,” Uzma told the media and supporters of PTI, according to Dawn.
In his statement, Imran said that he had been kept in solitary confinement and was treated like an animal and was put in a cage.
“My cell heats up like an oven. I am not allowed to speak with my children. I have the same facilities that an inmate on death row has…I was tortured by being confined in a cage and treated worse than animals. Electricity to my cell was shut off for five days. I was confined to the cell for ten days. For several weeks, any visits by family members, doctors, or lawyers were blocked,” said Imran.
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View All‘Asim Munir & ISI will be responsible’: Imran Khan says he could be killed
Imran said that Munir-led military-intelligence establishment has gone to all possible lengths to torture him and the only thing left was his murder.
Imran said, “The military establishment has done all they could against me. All that is left for them is to now murder me.”
Imran said that Munir and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Asim Malik would be responsible if he would be harmed physically in jail.
“The ISI controls all administrative matters related to my imprisonment. I’m saying it again: if anything happens to me, the Army Chief and DG-ISI [Director General of ISI] will be responsible," said Imran.
But Imran stressed he “will never accept this dictatorship”.
Imran said, “I am prepared to remain in a prison cell for as long as it takes in the struggle against this tyranny. I will not compromise on my principles for the true freedom of the nation.”
Imran has been in jail since 2023. He and his supporters have dubbed his incarceration and cases against him as politically motivated. He has more than 100 cases against him that range from corruption cases in which he has been convicted to cases related to the ‘May 9 violence’ when his supporters had gone on a nationwide rampage against the all-powerful Pakistan Army and stormed its headquarters in Rawalpindi and vandalised houses of senior commanders.
Imran has directly blamed Pakistan Army for plotting his ouster in 2022 in league with then-US government and then-Opposition parties like Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). He and his supporters have since been in an unprecedented open confrontation with the Army.
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