New Delhi. Suleman and Qasim, sons of former Pakistan Prime Minister and veteran cricketer Imran Khan, have expressed serious concerns about their father's safety. Open efforts are being made to kill him in jail. During the second Test match between England and Pakistan, both of Imran's sons gave an interview to former England captain Mike Atherton on Sky Sports.
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Voice was raised in support of Imran
Mike Atherton is among the 21 international cricket greats who signed the letter that was recently sent to the Pakistan government demanding proper medical care for Imran. Expressing deep concern over the current condition of his 73-year-old father, Qasim said, it is very clear what they are doing, which is that they are just trying to kill him openly there. They just want to keep them there for as long as possible and they just want their voices to be silenced forever.
Qasim further said that the last time he was able to talk to his aunts and someone else, he said that conditions had worsened severely recently. He was comparing this to other political prisoners who have been executed or who have died in prison. Now it is worse than before. He is being kept in complete isolation in a cell for more than 23 hours a day.
PCB opposed the interview
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The cricket board of the visiting team had protested after this interview was broadcast during the lunch break on the first day of the second Test being played between England and Pakistan at Lord's. According to sources, PCB had threatened to boycott the match. After this the PCB lodged a complaint with the broadcaster and expressed its displeasure over the broadcast. Apart from politics, Imran is an iconic face of international cricket, under whose captaincy Pakistan won its first and only ODI World Cup in 1992.
Imran recently underwent a medical examination following the instructions of the Supreme Court. He was taken to Shifa Hospital in Islamabad and shifted back to jail within a few hours. Suleman said that Imran has not been examined by independent doctors. “It just makes us think, what are they hiding?” Suleman said. Why are they so afraid of getting them examined by an impartial doctor? When the court ordered a medical examination, we were cautiously optimistic. Our apprehensions were proven true when, instead of being taken to a private hospital, he was taken to a government medical facility for just a few hours and then sent straight back to jail. His eye was bandaged for an eye problem, he clearly looked stressed and this is something that is very difficult for us to imagine.
Haven't talked to father since March
The two brothers said they have not met their father face-to-face since 2022, when Imran survived an assassination attempt, and that they last spoke to their father on the telephone in March. When asked to share the details of that call, he said that Imran remained firm and calm despite the difficult circumstances. Imran has been lodged in Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail since 2023 after being convicted by courts in corruption cases. Both brothers reiterated that their efforts to meet their father were being thwarted by being denied visas. Qasim said, we tried to meet him. But due to technical reasons, the visas we applied for were blocked.