Imran Khan enjoys luxurious prison amenities, reveals Pak govt

Islamabad: Jailed former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has a walking area adjacent to his cell, a cooler, a TV, a separate kitchen, equipment for exercise, and other amenities, the government has informed the Supreme Court.

Khan, 71, has been incarcerated in the high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since September last year. He was shifted to this prison from the District Jail Attock where he had been lodged after his arrest on August 5 2023 following conviction in the Toshakhana corruption case.

Appearing before the Supreme Court in a case on May 30, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party founder had complained to the chief justice that he was living in solitary confinement and the government had put restrictions on his meeting with lawyers and family members.

The government in a response submitted to the Supreme Court rejected his assertions by providing a list of facilities he enjoyed and also included photographs of Khan’s cell and other items as well as his meeting with his legal team in prison.

The government said that Khan enjoyed a walking area adjacent to the cell, a room cooler, a TV, a separate kitchen reading books, a study table with a chair and equipment for exercise.

The government also provided a list of individuals who have met with Khan, countering claims that he is being held in solitary confinement. It suggested that, if necessary, a commission could be appointed to verify Khan’s allegation.

Earlier, the government formalised in March the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for facilitating meetings with the convicted former premier. According to the SOPs, PTI leaders Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Sher Afzal Marwat, and Barrister Umair Ahmad Khan Niazi were designated as focal persons for coordinating visits to the jail.

Khan was to be allowed to meet his family and lawyers in two separate sessions on Tuesday, while a single session on Thursday will be reserved for his "lawyers/friends".

Those intending to meet Khan must coordinate with the jail authorities through the designated focal persons, who will provide the visitor list — consisting of two individuals per focal person — one day before the scheduled meeting, adhering to the six-person limit.

Separately, PTI in a WhatsApp message shared the photo of Khan’s cell which the government had released, claiming that “it was a cell photo where former Prime Minister Imran Khan is kept in solitary confinement”.

The party said that it was a contradiction to the claim that a former Prime Minister was entitled to an ‘A’ class cell with an air-conditioned room and a helper to attend to the errands.

“Mr Khan never did complain about being kept in a facility with no access to natural light or a window however it goes to show how government machinery fibbed about all this time, having him kept in a cell costing above a million each month,” the PTI said.