Pakistan authorities on Tuesday allowed former prime minister Imran Khan’s sister Noreen Niazi to meet him in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, following a Supreme Court order granting the jailed opposition leader one weekly meeting with his family.
Khan, founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has been held at Adiala Jail since 2023 and is facing several cases. He is currently serving a 14-year sentence in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case.
According to Dawn, Niazi met Khan for the first time this year. The two spoke in the jail’s conference room, where they discussed his health and other matters, jail sources were quoted as saying.
Niazi also informed Khan about the Supreme Court’s earlier direction to move him to Shifa International Hospital for a medical examination and treatment.
The Supreme Court has warned that the meetings must not be used for political activities. It said the relief granted to Khan could be withdrawn if the family meetings were used for political purposes.
Other members of Khan’s family, including his sisters Aleema Khan and Uzma Khan and his cousin Qasim Zaman, were not permitted to meet him. PTI leaders were also barred from the meeting.
Khan, 73, is the only brother among his four sisters, who have continued campaigning for his release from prison.
Separately, Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, who is also in jail, met members of her family on Tuesday. Her 40-minute meeting included her children, Musa and Mubashara Maneka, and her sister-in-law Mehrunnisa.
Bushra Bibi’s children are from her first marriage, which ended in divorce before she married Khan.
Earlier, the Supreme Court directed the Pakistani government to shift Khan to Shifa International Hospital within two days for medical treatment. The court ordered that he remain there until September 16, when it is scheduled to hear further petitions concerning his treatment at a private hospital.