Amnesty calls on govt to release Imran ahead of third full year of detention

Amnesty International on Tuesday called on the federal government to release Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder and former premier Imran Khan ahead of the completion of three full years in incarceration.

Imran has been imprisoned since August 5, 2023, currently serving a sentence at Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case. In addition, he faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) related to the protests of May 9, 2023.

On the eve of the completion of his three years, Amnesty International South Asia Acting Regional Director Isabelle Lassee noted that the authorities had “systematically denied” Imran the right to a fair trial, subjected him to prolonged solitary confinement and limited his access to medical care and visitation rights.

She further added that Imran not been allowed to meet his family for more than eight months and his vision had reportedly deteriorated significantly.

“Both he and his wife, Bushra Bibi Khan, have now been denied regular access to legal counsel since December 2025,” she stated.

The statement urged the authorities to “unconditionally restore Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi Khan’s right to see their family and lawyers”, adding that both must be given access to adequate medical care and their solitary confinement, which it said was “unlawful”, should end immediately.

“Ahead of planned gatherings by Imran Khan’s family, party and supporters to mark the anniversary, the authorities must facilitate the right to peaceful protest and ensure there is no repeat of the unlawful and arbitrary crackdowns on protesters so frequently witnessed in the country and against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf,” it concluded.

Last week, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment Alice Jill Edwards said she was concerned about reports that Imran was being denied proper medical and was suffering from serious medical issues that had not been treated appropriately.

She had called on the authorities to restore “humane conditions and allow him his choice of medical examination and appropriate treatment”.

Imran and his wife, Bushra Bibi, remain incarcerated in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. They were sentenced on December 20, 2025, to 17 years in prison in the Toshakhana-II case, which pertains to allegations that the couple unlawfully retained a Bulgari jewellery set gifted by the Saudi crown prince during an official visit to Saudi Arabia.

The PTI has also expressed concern over his health, alleging that jail authorities and the government were obstructing treatment for a “serious eye condition” and demanding immediate medical care.

READ: Imran Khan ‘loses vision’ in one eye due to jail torture, alleges Salman Akram Raja

In late January, Imran was first taken to the hospital for a minor eye procedure. Five days later, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that doctors at PIMS had conducted an examination of his eyes and, after obtaining his written consent, carried out a minor medical procedure that lasted around 20 minutes.

Amid controversy surrounding the eye treatment, PIMS confirmed that Imran was administered an anti-VEGF intra-vitreal injection to treat right central retinal vein occlusion.

Previously, the PTI wrote an open letter to leading global human rights institutions, raising serious concerns over what it described as “systematic and escalating violations” of fundamental human rights against its founder.

The letter, addressed to organisations including the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists, alleged “sustained breaches of constitutional guarantees, due process and international custodial standards”.

In the letter, the party said it was “gravely concerned” about the ongoing violations of fundamental rights, constitutional guarantees and due process being perpetrated against its founder.