Sohail Afridi said he was again stopped from meeting Imran Khan at Adiala Jail despite court orders. He called for street protests, saying the denial showed institutions were failing to deliver justice.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Thursday called for protests after he said a delegation led by him was again denied permission to meet jailed former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan. Speaking outside Adiala Jail, Afridi said the authorities had shown no intention of allowing the meeting despite court orders.

Khan, 73, has been in jail since August 2023 and is facing several cases. His arrest had earlier triggered widespread protests, including clashes between his supporters and security forces at Islamabad’s D-Chowk, near key government buildings including the Presidency, the Prime Minister’s Office, Parliament and the Supreme Court.

Afridi said he and his delegation were once again stopped from meeting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder. “We have three judges’ orders in our hands directing that meetings be allowed, but every Tuesday and Thursday these orders are thrown into the dustbin,” he alleged. He said contempt of court petitions had also been filed, but no hearing was taking place on them.

He asked party workers to remain ready and, from 10 pm on Thursday, take to the streets with the national flag and PTI flags and “turn every chowk into D-Chowk”. He said the protest would send a message to the public that the treatment being meted out to Khan, whom he described as the country’s most popular leader since April 2022, was unjustified.

Khan’s supporters have repeatedly alleged that authorities have denied him access to family members and party colleagues and have failed to provide adequate medical care for his health problems, including an eye condition. Afridi said Thursday was his last visit to Adiala Jail before September 27 and that he would return only when the jail administration confirmed a meeting with Khan.

He said Khan’s supporters were planning a long march to Islamabad on September 27, demanding justice, a better future and a change in their destiny, and claimed that more than two million people would join. Afridi said the party was pursuing all constitutional, legal and democratic avenues, but its grievances were not being addressed. He alleged that Khan’s family and PTI workers were being treated as “second-class citizens”, forcing them to exercise their constitutional right to peaceful protest. “If judges cannot get their own orders implemented, then where will the people seek justice?” Afridi asked. “If all decisions are to be made elsewhere, then what is the role of institutions?” he said.

The developments outside Adiala Jail on Thursday centred on Afridi’s claim that court orders allowing meetings with Khan were not being followed, his call for immediate protests and the PTI’s plan for a long march to Islamabad on September 27.

With PTI Inputs