UK House of Lords debated Imran Khan’s detention, raised concerns over health and jail access

United Kingdom’s House of Lords on Thursday, held a debate on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan's detention and health.

Imran has been imprisoned since August 2023 and is currently serving a sentence at Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case. He also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) related to the May 9, 2023, protests.

Initiating the debate, Labour Party member Baroness Alexander of Cleveden said the discussion was timely given Imran's "deteriorating welfare", citing concerns over his health, conditions of detention, access to medical care, denial of family visits and recurring questions regarding access to justice.

She said the debate was not intended to endorse any one politician or their past record. “Mr Imran Khan, like every politician in the past, present, and future, has made mistakes, but this is about making our voice heard on the concerns that have been raised,” she said.

Alexander expressed concern over what she described as a pattern of weaponising the legal system to keep Imran Khan under detention and away from political activity, noting that the former prime minister is not just any other prisoner.

Highlighting the issue of family access, she said that despite previous assurances, Imran’s immediate family remains effectively barred from seeing him. His sons, Sulaiman and Qasim Khan, who are British citizens, have not been permitted to visit him since December last year. “They should have the right to visit their father in a way that does not affect their entitlement to British consular protection,” she added.

She urged Minister Baroness Chapman to explore humanitarian access for Imran Khan’s sons to help secure visas that would allow them full diplomatic protection, enabling them to visit their father without risking their safety. She also called on the UK government to use its influence to uphold the principle of justice.

Addressing the debate, Conservative Party member Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said the government of Pakistan should ensure that Imran receives an independent specialist medical assessment, including by a professional of his choice.

He expressed concern over the denial of access to close family members and called for Imran’s transfer to house detention. “House detention would ensure that legal processes are observed while mitigating concerns around welfare, transparency, and proportionality,” he said.

While commending Pakistan for its mediation role in the Middle East conflict, Lord Ahmad urged that those in detention be treated fairly. “At a time when the eyes of the world are on Pakistan, as it provides a glimmer of hope amid the dark clouds of war, it must also reflect on how it treats detainees, especially figures of such prominence,” he added.

The House called on the UK government to use Commonwealth and other platforms to urge Pakistani authorities to treat Khan with dignity and compassion. It also urged Pakistan to immediately allow his family to meet him, ensure proper treatment for his eyesight, and provide fair and transparent access to legal processes without undue delay.

The debate comes a day after Kasim Khan, son of the PTI founder, addressed the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), urging the body to intervene and press the Pakistani government for the immediate release of his father.

Read: Kasim urges UNHRC intervention to end Imran's persecution, detention immediately

The former prime minister’s sons have not seen him since November 2022, following an assassination attempt. They said they applied for visas in January of this year, but have yet to receive a response.

However, the PTI founder was allowed to telephone his sons from Adiala Jail on Eid day, speaking with them for around 25 to 30 minutes. During the call, his sons inquired about his health, while Imran expressed happiness at being able to speak to them on the festive occasion. He was brought out of the compound to a special room for the call and returned to the compound afterwards.

Last week, Jemima Goldsmith, the ex-wife of Imran, made a direct appeal to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to allow their sons to visit their father in prison.

In response, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that the sons of Imran do not require visas to visit Pakistan to meet their father, upon which Jemima replied that the government was refusing visas for their sons, in an attempt to deprive them of British protection in the case of a possible arrest upon arrival in Pakistan.