Islamabad: Bushra Bibi, the wife of incarcerated former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan, has expressed grave concerns about her husband’s safety in Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail, alleging that he was kept in inhumane conditions and given contaminated food. Speaking informally to journalists at the prison on Saturday, Bushra revealed fears for her own life as well, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.
According to Bushra, Khan’s life is in danger, keeping in view the past incidents where he was allegedly poisoned and shot at. She added that their legal request to investigate the poisoning has not been addressed by the court yet.
Imran is living in unsanitary conditions: Wife Bushra
Describing conditions in the jail, Bushra, 49, alleged that 71-year-old Khan was kept in unsanitary conditions and given contaminated food to eat. She said that during their meeting in Attock Jail, Khan appeared emaciated and had to pick insects from his hair throughout the night. Bushra also criticised the treatment of political prisoners compared to convicted criminals, alleging that other prisoners received VIP treatment while Khan struggled without even basic amenities.
Khan, who is incarcerated in the high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since his arrest in a corruption case in August last year, faces over 200 cases and has been convicted in a few of them. Responding to a journalist's question about Bushra's claims of toilet cleaner being added to her food and her accusations against the authorities, she asserted the claims were true despite lacking physical evidence.
Khan intervened briefly, cautioning his wife about the limitations of the media, which led to a brief protest from the attending journalists. Khan attempted to stop Bushra from speaking and said: "Censored media won’t broadcast your words." This remark prompted the journalists to protest, asserting that all his statements were aired.
The session ended with Bushra emphasising her and Khan's willingness to swear an oath that the charges against them were fabricated. Despite Khan's concerns, Bushra insisted on sharing her story with the media. Bushra, who is also in jail, was initially arrested in the un-Islamic marriage case. In Islam, a woman can’t remarry before completing four months after divorce or the death of her husband. She, however, remains imprisoned in the Toshakhana corruption case even as a Pakistani court on Saturday acquitted Khan and Bushra in the un-Islamic marriage case.
(With inputs from agency)
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