The sons of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan have told the media that the Pakistani government has blocked their visa applications. And that the government is not allowing them and the family of Khan to meet with him.
According to the reports of ‘The News’, diplomatic sources in London on Monday have said that visa applications submitted by the sons of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan remain pending with Pakistan’s Ministry of Interior.
Sky News reporter’s statement
While countering the claims of Imran Khan’s sons, Yalda Hakim, an Afghan-born Australian broadcast journalist at Sky News, in her tweet shared a video statement saying, “I’ve got a bit of an update on the former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. We’ve been following this story for some time. I did an exclusive interview with both of his sons.”
Adding to this, she said, “They told me their father was in complete solitary confinement, that he didn’t have access to his physician, to his lawyers, and that he hadn’t met any family members. Now planning, because they said it openly, so unless they go against their word again, then we should hopefully be going in January. We applied for our visas, but they haven’t come through yet. His sons, Qasim and Suleiman, say that their visa application has been rejected.”
In her video statement, she countered the claims of Khan’s sons and said, “The Pakistan government has come out and said that’s not the case, that there’s a technical issue with their application and that they’d like them to reapply. But his party and his supporters say this is some kind of delay tactic to really prevent any more attention on Imran Khan.”
She also mentioned the agenda of PTI, by saying, “Many people in Pakistan, his supporters say, the government is just trying to erase Imran Khan’s name from television, from the media, from anyone really talking about him. But his family, his sons, are determined to see their father, to see their brother. And they’re waiting for that visa application to be approved. They now say it’s been about three months since he was able to meet with anyone, about six weeks since he’s met with his lawyer. Six weeks ago, when he did meet with his lawyer, it was only for a few minutes. I’ve reached out to the government in Pakistan, and I’m waiting for a response from them.”
Background
Both of his sons, Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Khan, were unable to obtain visas from the Pakistan High Commission in London due to shortcomings in their applications. Officials said the applicants were asked to provide additional information, but the process was not pursued further after that request.
The applications are currently with the relevant department in Islamabad and will be reviewed once the missing details are submitted and the sources are added. The issue has surfaced as the PTI has voiced concerns about Imran Khan’s health. The party said the former prime minister was briefly taken from Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), where he underwent a medical procedure lasting about 20 minutes.
Also read: Imran Khan’s sons’ incomplete visa applications raise questions
