Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Thursday wrote to his Punjab counterpart, Maryam Nawaz, seeking accountability for anyone who allegedly mistreated former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s sisters, and the implementation of court orders for meetings with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder.
In his letter, Afridi highlighted “clear and binding” judicial directions regarding Khan’s visitation rights, allowing close family members and nominated individuals to meet him twice a week. “Despite the unambiguous nature of these instructions, repeated reports indicate persistent non-implementation by authorities responsible for compliance,” he said.
The letter describes as “particularly disturbing” accusations of the “rough treatment” meted out to Khan’s sisters while they were staging a sit-in outside Adiala Jail after being denied a meeting with their brother. “These individuals are apolitical private citizens, seeking only to meet their brother in accordance with court permissions,” he wrote, maintaining there was no “conceivable legal or administrative basis for obstructing or mishandling immediate family members.”
As such, he wrote, their obstruction, physical restraint, or temporary detention was “wholly unacceptable.”
The KP chief minister lamented that such actions created an impression that “judicial directives are being disregarded.” He said the situation was “untenable and irreconcilable with basic expectations of due process, rule of law,” and urged the Punjab C.M. to ensure “a proper, safe, and dignified” waiting area for authorized visitors.
He said he “expected” the Punjab government to identify and hold accountable individuals responsible for obstructing, insulting or physically mishandling peaceful visitors including Khan’s family members; issue clear and enforceable directives to prison and police authorities; and establish a transparent mechanism ensuring that future meetings are facilitated in orderly, respectful and legally compliant manner.
Afridi wrote that that any deviation from court-mandated procedures or disrespectful treatment of the former prime minister’s immediate family “becomes a matter of direct institutional concern,” adding he could not remain indifferent when dignity of a former head of government and his lawful rights were compromised. “I am therefore constrained to demand that these issues be addressed promptly, decisively and in full conformity with judicial directions,” he said.
“I would appreciate your [Punjab C.M.] attention to the above so that dignity of all concerned is upheld and the rule of law remains unimpaired,” he concluded.