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The two sons of former Pakistani prime minister and cricket legend Imran Khan have accused the Pakistani authorities of slowly pushing their 73-year-old father towards death in prison, while also criticising the British government for failing to intervene.
Qasim Khan and Sulaiman Khan made the allegations in an interview with British newspaper The Telegraph in London.
They said their father was being held in solitary confinement in a cramped 6-by-8-foot cell at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. They also claimed that he had lost around 85% of the vision in one eye and was being forced to drink unsafe water.
“The Pakistani regime simply wants to silence him and is creating conditions in which he will gradually waste away,” the brothers alleged.
They further claimed that despite a court order, Imran Khan had not been taken to Islamabad’s Shifa Hospital for specialist treatment. Instead, he was given what they described as a routine medical check-up at a government hospital before being returned to solitary confinement.
“They are clearly trying to make sure he dies inside,” Qasim Khan was quoted as saying. “Then the authorities will avoid responsibility by saying he was an elderly man who died naturally.”
The brothers also expressed frustration over what they described as the British government’s failure to assist their father.
Qasim criticised former UK foreign secretary David Lammy’s position, claiming that British officials had not helped the family and had advised them against travelling to Pakistan to meet their father.
The brothers also described as “senseless” the Pakistan Cricket Board’s reported response after the Pakistan team threatened to stop playing during the Lord’s Test over the broadcast of a television interview with the two brothers.
Concern over Imran Khan’s health has also been voiced by figures in the international cricket community. Australia captain Pat Cummins and Khan’s former teammate Javed Miandad have reportedly expressed concern about his condition and called for international attention to the situation.
Despite the obstacles, Qasim and Sulaiman said they remained determined to make their father’s message and political struggle heard around the world.
They said, however, that they continue to live with deep concern over his health and fear for his safety while he remains in prison.