In letter to Maryam Nawaz, Afridi demands accountability and implementation of Imran’s visitation rights
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, in a letter to his Punjab counterpart Maryam Nawaz, has expressed concern over the “rough and inappropriate” treatment meted out to Imran Khan’s sisters during their recent attempt to visit him in Adiala jail.
Afridi reminded Maryam that Imran is a former prime minister and warned that “any departure from the court-ordered procedures in his case, or any disrespectful treatment of his immediate family, becomes a matter of direct institutional concern.
The CM referred to the incident on Tuesday night, when the Rawalpindi police detained the sisters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan. The arrest ended a 10-hour sit-in in front of Adiala jail. The three sisters, Aleema, Dr. Uzma and Noreen, were shifted to Chakri. The sit-in had been organized near the factory check post after the PTI founder and his family members, along with party leaders, were denied permission to gather at Adiala Jail on the day of a scheduled visit.
In a statement on social media platform
Read: Aleema Khan recounts alleged police brutality at Adiala jail protest
“Clear and binding judicial instructions govern Mr. Imran Khan’s visitation schedule. Despite the unambiguous nature of these instructions, repeated reports indicate a persistent lack of implementation by enforcement authorities.”
The Islamabad High Court has issued multiple orders allowing the prime minister and Imran’s sisters to meet the former prime minister. However, these orders have not been carried out. Afridi himself has been rejected by Adiala seven times.
Condemning the treatment of Imran’s sisters: “Even if there were restrictions on political visitors, which is a completely different category, there is no conceivable legal or administrative basis for obstructing or mistreating immediate family members whose presence is neither political nor disruptive in nature.”
Aleema Khan, Imran’s sister, alleged that her elder sister was dragged along the road and the lawyers were put into police vans. He further alleged that the female police officers, whom he referred to as “Gullu Butts women”, were summoned and one officer, identified as Gulnaz, ordered others to “beat” them.
Read more: CM Sohail Afridi denied meeting Imran despite court orders
She added that her sister Noreen, 71, was thrown to the ground and dragged, and that the sanctity of women’s headscarves was ignored when 17 female lawyers were bundled into a police van and dragged by their hair.
He has demanded that the Punjab government ensure visits and implementation of all judicial directives, to hold accountable the staff accused of “physical mistreatment” of Imran’s family and KP ministers.
It has urged that clear instructions be given to police and prison staff to avoid such incidents in the future and “establish a transparent mechanism to ensure that all future meetings are facilitated”.
