ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Information Secretary, Raoof Hasan, has alleged that state institutions are making efforts to ensure that PTI founder Imran Khan remains in jail, despite the resolution of the cipher and Nikah cases against him. “He will have to spend more time in prison, and soon, additional cases will be filed against him,” Hasan stated during a press conference in Islamabad.
Raoof Hasan accused powerful individuals of attempting to delay the verdicts on concluded cases against Imran Khan to prolong his imprisonment until new cases can be fabricated. “Imran Khan should have been released by now, but the establishment is pressuring state institutions to keep him behind bars,” he asserted. Hasan mentioned preparations for another case related to the Toshakhana, despite legal provisions allowing only one case per matter.
He emphasised that both the cipher and Nikah cases have been fully resolved, and the sentence in the Toshakhana case has been suspended. “Imran Khan should be out of jail by now, but new cases are being concocted against him,” he added. Hasan drew parallels to the treatment of Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who faced eight simultaneous cases to prevent his release in the cipher case.
Raoof Hasan expressed concerns about the weakening state and increasing pressure on state institutions, claiming that efforts to keep Imran Khan in jail are symptomatic of this decline. He criticised the establishment’s role over the past 76 years, highlighting instances of prime ministers being ousted and replaced, and drew historical parallels to the rejection of public decisions during the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.
“The powerful are once again risking the state’s stability to extend their hold on power,” Hasan concluded.
