Imran Khan’s sons voice fears over his health on third jail anniversary
Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s sons, Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Khan, have expressed concern over their father’s health, telling CNN that authorities have prevented family members, lawyers and doctors from visiting the jailed former premier for months.
Imran has been imprisoned since August 2023, currently serving a sentence at Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case. He also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) related to the protests of May 9, 2023.
The brothers have not seen their father since November 2022 after he survived an assassination attempt. They said they applied for visas in January of this year but have yet to receive a response.
Speaking to CNN in London on the third anniversary of Khan’s imprisonment, the brothers said they had received no recent updates about their father’s condition because “his family, doctors [and] lawyers have not been allowed to see him for seven months.”
“We’re trying, we’d like to go, but nothing’s coming through,” Kasim said, claiming administrative issues had prevented the pair from travelling to Pakistan. He added there was “no reason” they should be prevented from entering the country.
The brothers alleged that each time they spoke publicly about their father’s incarceration, it became increasingly difficult for them to secure the necessary documentation to visit him.
The sons of the imprisoned former leader of Pakistan Imran Khan told CNN they fear for their father’s health, claiming authorities in the South Asian country are preventing them from seeing him.
Pakistan’s government said it “categorically rejects” the claim that Khan has faced… pic.twitter.com/NstADWQbAP
— CNN International (@cnni) August 6, 2026
In response, the Ministry of Information rejected the allegations, telling CNN that both Kasim and Sulaiman possess National Identity Cards for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP), allowing them to enter the country without visas.
The ministry described the brothers’ claims as “misleading” and accused them of turning an administrative matter into “political point-scoring.”
However, the brothers maintained that their identity cards had expired and had not been renewed, a claim that CNN said was “not addressed by the ministry”.
In a separate statement provided to CNN, the government categorically rejected claims that Khan had been subjected to a seven-month communications blackout or denied access to family members, lawyers and doctors.
It said prison records showed Khan had been granted repeated and substantial access to visitors in accordance with prison regulations and court directives.
The government also said Khan’s health remained “oriented and stable”, with no evidence of any “acute or unmanaged deterioration”, adding that he was receiving medical treatment, prescribed medication and follow-up care.
Read: £190m case: IHC orders Imran, Bushra meeting with their lawyers within seven days
Authorities further rejected allegations regarding Khan’s prison conditions, saying he was housed in “an exclusive seven-cell compound designed for approximately 30 to 35 prisoners”.
According to the statement, the facility includes a 57-by-14-foot corridor, a 35-by-37-foot lawn, a bed, mattress, four pillows, blankets, a table, chair, sanitation facilities and exercise equipment, arrangements it said “bear no resemblance to the picture of isolation, neglect or punitive deprivation being presented publicly.”
Despite the government’s assurances, Kasim said the family remained concerned because they had not been provided with any recent medical reports. “They’re refusing to show us any kind of health report. So his health may have deteriorated significantly since then.”
The brothers also reiterated their belief that their father was unlikely to strike any political deal that excluded other PTI leaders and supporters currently in detention.
Kasim called on “anyone with power” to take notice of the situation in Pakistan. “350 million people who have voted for him, who support him, all want him to, you know, lead the country. Instead, they’re being shunned, and instead the person they want in power is … behind bars for no good reason,” he said.
Also Read: Imran Khan’s sons cast doubt on medical report, seek visas to visit him
Human rights organisation Amnesty International also called on authorities to “unconditionally” restore Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi’s right to meet their family members and lawyers. The organisation called for both Khan and Bushra to receive adequate medical care and for what it described as their unlawful solitary confinement to end immediately.
“For three years, Pakistan’s authorities have systematically denied Imran Khan the right to a fair trial, subjected him to prolonged solitary confinement, and limited his access to medical care and visitation rights. He has not been allowed to meet his family for more than eight months, and his vision has reportedly deteriorated significantly. Both he and his wife, Bushra Bibi Khan, have now been denied regular access to legal counsel since December 2025,” Amnesty said in a statement.
The interview came as PTI marked the third anniversary of Khan’s imprisonment with nationwide protests on Wednesday, observing a “Black Day” and demanding the immediate release of Khan and Bushra Bibi, restoration of constitutional rule, relief from inflation, restoration of what it described as the public mandate and the return of democracy.
#ناحق_قید_کے_3سال پانچ اگست عمران خان صاحب کو غیر قانونی قید میں رکھنے کے خلاف پورا پاکستان سراپا احتجاج۔
لیہ میں شمس نیازی کی قیادت میں احتجاجی ریلی۔ pic.twitter.com/LO7tpEikJi
— PTI (@PTIofficial) August 6, 2026
Earlier this year, Kasim addressed the UN Human Rights Council, calling for the release of his father and other political prisoners. “We ask this council and the OHCHR to urge Pakistan to end this persecution immediately. They must comply with the UN Working Group’s opinion, and they must release my father,” Kasim said during the UNHRC’s 61st session.
In his address at UNHRC, Kasim described his father’s prolonged detention, revealing that Imran has been held in a small cell designed for solitary confinement under constant surveillance for more than two and a half years.
“We go months without any contact, and the last time I spoke to him was a brief phone call. When we recently tried to travel to Pakistan to visit him, the government deliberately refused to process our visas,” he said. “Denying a prisoner’s children the right to see him is collective punishment. From the limited contact we had, I know my father is suffering,” he stated.
He stressed that his father’s case was not isolated, but rather part of a much broader pattern of oppression in Pakistan since 2022. He also labelled the 2024 elections as “rigged,” claiming they were designed to prevent his father’s political project from taking over.
Khan was ousted as prime minister through a parliamentary vote of no confidence on April 10, 2022, and a year later, on May 9, 2023, he was detained by the authorities in the Al-Qadir Trust case, leading to widespread riots across the country, serving as the fodder for more cases against the PTI founder.
