Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan Not Allowed To Leave Isolation Cells

JAKARTA - Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was not allowed to leave the isolation cell occupied and his rights revoked as a prisoner, Pakistan's Tereek-e-Insaf said.

Khan has been sentenced to 34 years in prison after being found guilty in four cases. He has also been disqualified from his candidacy in the General Election which began on Thursday this week.

Not only that, he also received several sentences, most recently handed down last week, after district courts ruled his marriage to Bushra Bibi violated the law.

"He is practically in an isolation cell," a spokesman for PTI Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari told The National News, as quoted on February 7.

"He was not given 'Class A', which a member of parliament and former prime minister should have obtained," he continued.

The party and its supporters claim the punishment was punishment for its rhetoric against Pakistan's military power.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights urged Pakistani authorities to ensure a fully free and fair voting process, following complaints from the PTI regarding harassment and inability to hold similar demonstrations with the previous ruling party and its candidate Nawaz Sharif.

Authorities have denied the claims.

Bukhari said Khan was not allowed to leave his prison cell measuring 8 x 10 feet, or about 2.44 x 3.05 square meters except for a lawyer's visit.

Despite this, he said Khan was physically and mentally "strengthening himself".

"He has always been a person who can survive in this bad situation," said Bukhari.

"In this case, he is quite good," he continued.

However, there are concerns that Khan will be vulnerable in prison, especially because of the threat of poisoning.

"We leave all the responsibility to the prison itself to prepare food for him and give it, because if something comes from outside, then it can be dangerous," he explained.

It is known that Khan came to power in 2018 with the aim of fighting corruption and improving Pakistan's economy. However, he has been involved in legal disputes since being ousted from power in 2022.

Since then, political rivals Khan Pakistan's Muslim League (PML-N) and the Pakistan People's Party led by two political families that dominated Pakistan's politics for decades, have regained control of the country.

Sharif, a PML-N candidate, is expected to win the election and become Pakistan's Prime Minister for a fourth term.

Some of the criminal penalties, believed by Khan and his group to be politically motivated, have left him banned from running in General Elections.

"We will face the so-called democratic elections. There is nothing democratic in this regard," said Bukhari.

"Everything is done to suppress the popularity of Imran Khan and his party. And unfortunately, the world is quiet," he said.