Imran says ready for 1,000 years in jail if necessary

Islamabad, Aug 19:  Pakistan’s jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Friday said he was ready to endure imprisonment even for 1,000 years and continue to stay incarcerated for his country, according to a media report. Khan, 70, was sentenced to three years in jail by a sessions court on August 5 for hiding proceeds from the sale of state gifts (Toshakhana). He is currently incarcerated in Attock Jail in Punjab province. A division bench, comprising IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, will take up the hearing next Tuesday (August 22). Speaking to reporters on Friday after meeting Khan in Attock jail, Umiar Niazi, a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief’s legal team, said the former prime minister was in ”good health, although he had grown a beard,” The Express Tribune newspaper reported. “He [Imran] was provided with a mirror and shaving kit today,” the lawyer said. Niazi asserted that among a team of six, only he was granted permission to meet Khan. The lawyer expressed his intention to file a contempt of court petition against the ”jailer’s conduct” for denying the legal team access to the former premier, despite possessing court orders. “I do not care about not being given facilities [in jail]. It does not matter even if I am kept in jail for 1,000 years, but I am ready for it because [one has to] make sacrifices for freedom,” Niazi quoted Khan as saying. Khan is facing more than 140 cases across the country and faces charges like terrorism, violence, blasphemy, corruption and murder since his ouster in April 2022. The lawyer confirmed that the Federal Investigation Agency questioned Khan in Attock jail regarding the cipher (confidential diplomatic cable) issue on Wednesday, during which the former premier reiterated his previous stance. He said Khan also spoke about the “disappearance” of his nephew Barrister Hassaan Khan Niazi, the report said.