Incarcerated PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan has penned a letter to Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, extolling the top judge to bring about an end to the “terror and brutality by the state and the suppression of democracy”, it emerged on Thursday.
Titled “Meltdown of the constitutional order in Pakistan”, the letter, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, was dated January 24 and signed from Adiala Jail where he is incarcerated.
Following the arrest of the ex-premier on May 9, 2023, from the Islamabad High Court’s premises, riots erupted across the country and went on for at least 24 hours. The state subsequently launched a crackdown against him and his party, filing several other cases against Imran since the events of May 9, in many of which he has been acquitted.
The period since has been one of political instability with the government and opposition at loggerheads with each other.
“You are hereby called upon to exercise all powers vested in the Supreme Court of Pakistan to bring to an end the terror and brutality by the state and the suppression of democracy that are today denying to the people of Pakistan their basic human rights. One or more judicial commissions may be set up to examine the grievances of the people of Pakistan, some of which have been referred to in this letter,” Imran concluded in his 18-page letter that was attached with over 300 pages of evidence for the ex-premier’s assertions regarding the highhandedness against his party and the state of the country.
Imran said several petitions highlighting the “assault on fundamental human rights and the electoral process” were filed over the last eighteen months and more before the Supreme Court to safeguard the constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights of the people.
“When all organs and agencies of the state that are mandated by the law to exercise power in order to safeguard life, liberty and democracy stand subjugated by brute force and are acting in aid of persecution and fraud it is the duty of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to intervene.
“The Supreme Court of Pakistan has not been vested with enormous power by the Constitution of Pakistan in order to act as a bystander. Unfortunately, none of the petitions filed before this honourable court, including by me, have been taken up. This has allowed a free hand to a reign of brutality and fraud,” Imran alleged.
Imran said the evidence he attached pertained to the “ongoing murders, injuries, abductions and torture carried out against members and supporters of the PTI in order to sustain the regime in office”.
Lashing out at the current setup, he said it was “the result of oppression and of large scale electoral fraud carried out on February 8 and 9, 2024. Unarmed protesters have been met with barbaric state brutality. Reference may be made to the dossier … provides the names and photographs of some of those who lost their lives or sustained firearm injuries on November 26, 2024”, referring to the allegations of rigging in the general elections and the events of November in Islamabad last year that saw clashes between PTI supporters and law enforcement.
“A list of 172 individuals injured on November 26, 2024 is placed here … Hospital records of the martyred and the injured were sealed and tampered with by state personnel. Police stations refused to register first information reports. Over 10,000 PTI supporters were arrested between November 24-27, 2024 all across Pakistan,” the PTI founder alleged.
Criticising how his own arrest on May 9, 2023, was carried out, the former prime minister claimed that the events of the day were “used as a pretext to arrest thousands of members and supporters of the PTI all across the country” with over 100 people handed over to military custody for military trials.
“Military court trials of civilians with no appeal to an independent court are an egregious violation of the fundamental human rights recognised by the Constitution of Pakistan and by human rights law the world over.”
Pointing out his own continued incarceration, the PTI founder said over 200 “fake and frivolous cases” were registered against him. “The entirety of my detention has been marked by routine mistreatment and a systematic curtailment of my rights as a political prisoner. The abuse intensified during the period from October 3-25, 2024, for not just me but also for the other over 8,000 other prisoners in Adiala Jail. During this time, I was held incommunicado from the outside world, in solitary confinement, denied essential privileges, and subjected to degrading treatment,” he added.
Regarding the treatment meted out to the PTI leadership and party base, he said: “The targeted attacks against the leadership, workers, and supporters of the PTI are nothing short of a sustained campaign of political persecution and terror.
“PTI’s political cadre, from its senior-most leaders to its grassroots supporters, has been subjected to relentless threats, abductions, and enforced disappearances. Their homes and offices have been brazenly ransacked, and their families have faced direct intimidation, creating an environment of pervasive fear and insecurity.
“Such individuals are not merely kidnapped and intimidated; they are forced, often under threat or through psychological and physical abuse, to act according to the dictates of their captors. The coercion includes, but is not limited to, voting in parliamentary sessions according to their abductors’ desires, having had family members kidnapped, domestic servants abused and beaten, children threatened, detention in the dark of the night from within the precincts of parliament.
“Remarkably, forcible or public renunciation of political affiliation often results in a reclamation of liberty. This manipulation of political expression and freedom represents a dire affront to democracy and the rule of law, turning basic rights into bargaining chips at the mercy of shadowy forces operating with impunity.”
Imran also highlighted the constraints placed on his party’s attempts at electoral and political campaigning such as restrictions on holding protests and assemblies.
The PTI founder alleged that the “abusive and coercive” tactics against his party had extended well beyond to cover all those critical of the government with abductions, torture and intimidation becoming “the order of the day”.
The ex-premier also pointed to developments in the country’s legal landscape such as the continued lack of implementation of the apex court’s reserved seats verdict and changes to the election laws and judicial apparatus.
“It is clear that given the persistent abuse of the law by state authorities, that the very idea of the rule of law and of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution has become a mere allusion. This coordinated abuse of the law is a betrayal of the trust reposed in these institutions by the citizens of Pakistan, who rightfully expect integrity and justice in the discharge of their duties.”
International concern
The PTI founder is not the only one to highlight such issues in the country’s recent sociopolitical landscape.
The European Union has warned Pakistan not to take its GSP+ status for granted.
Olof Skoog, the EU Special Representative for Human Rights who is currently on a week-long visit to Pakistan, has urged the government not to use military courts to pursue cases against citizens, and opposed recent moves to restrict freedom of expression.
Talking to Dawn, he said he had conveyed these messages in separate meetings with top government functionaries, including the army chief, chief justice and members of the federal cabinet.
The focus of his visit is to engage with the government on pressing human rights issues and learn about Pakistan’s plans to address them ahead of the upcoming GSP+ monitoring mission, due in June 2025.
US lawmakers and rights activists also urged the new Congress last week to take a stand against the military trials of civilians in Pakistan and to advocate for the reversal of anti-democratic measures targeting the PTI.
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