Will start hunger strike for being ill-treated in jail: Imran

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder chairman Imran Khan on Friday announced to go on hunger strike over ill-treatment meted out to him in the prison.

Talkng to reporters during hearing of a case, Imran said, “How can we resolve differences if people are not allowed to meet me? I am going on a hunger strike due to the mistreatment I am facing in jail. After consulting with the party, I will announce the date of the hunger strike.”

The former prime minister said that he will never bow to the oppressive forces of the time, even if it means dying in jail. “I am ready to fight as long as I am alive,” he declared.

He said his lawyers have objected to Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa’s presence on every bench.

Imran expressed frustration over being prevented from meeting his team, which waited outside Adiala Jail for three hours.

He said that party leaders had come to meet him, but they were not allowed to see him. He waited inside for three hours while his party leaders stood outside. He had called both groups to jail to resolve their differences.

Imran said that the authorities believe they can weaken his party by creating internal conflicts. He mentioned that the time for negotiations had passed, which was on February 8, when the public gave the PTI a strong mandate.

The PTI founder said that if he had met his team on Thursday, he would have resolved their differences. He claimed that Pakistan has shifted from a hybrid regime to an authoritative dictatorship, and the whole world knows what is happening in Pakistan.

He also said that the politics of the PMLN and PPP had ended after the budget, and they faced consequences that should not happen even to an enemy.

He urged party leaders not to bring their differences into the public domain, warning that doing so would deviate them from their primary purpose.

He mentioned that jail authorities are concerned about how he obtained the Hamoodur Rahman Commission report inside the jail. He said that he has been held in solitary confinement for nearly a year and, despite the extreme heat, he has not complained.

He criticised the handling of Afghan policy, saying that while officials talk about Congress and UN resolutions, they threaten to attack Afghanistan.

He criticised the recent budget, saying that it has broken the public’s back, and emphasised the need for transparent elections to solve the country’s problems.

“Until 1990, Pakistan was at the forefront of the subcontinent, but today everyone is ahead of Pakistan,” he lamented.

He dismissed perceptions that his party leaders are not making efforts to get him out of jail, praising Omar Ayub, Ali Amin Gandapur and Shibli Faraz for their efforts.

Earlier, Accountability Court Judge Mohammad Ali Warraich summoned former principal secretary to the prime minister Azam Khan, former defence minister Pervez Khattak, Zubeida Jalal, and Patwari Gohar Abbas as witnesses in a 190-million-pound reference.

The hearing took place at Adiala Jail. Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were present in court.

The NAB legal team appeared alongside defence lawyers, the FBI DC, and the assistant director, who completed their testimonies. The court concluded the testimonies of 30 witnesses in the reference and adjourned further proceedings until July 10.

Speaking at a news conference here along with PTI senior leadership including Shamim Naqvi, Shandana Gulzar, Shoaib Shaheen and Shaukat Basra, PTI Information Secretary Raoof Hasan said, “Our lawyers believe that we will not get justice.”

Raoof also condemned the alleged abduction of Rizwan Ahmed, a senior member of PTI’s media department, while coming from his home to office. He charged that it was another living example of state repression, terrorism and fascism.

Raoof said they came to know that Rizwan was abducted by FIA and they would move the court to ensure his earliest release.

Shoaib Shaheen said they would continue their struggle for supremacy of the constitution and rule of law despite all odds. Shandana Gulzar said if Khan and his wife were not safe in this country then what to talk of an ordinary citizen. Shoukat Basra announced that all 180 PTI MNAs and MPs from across the country would appear before the court and express their distrust and no-confidence in the CJP in writing.