Asim Munir jailed my wife Bushra Bibi out of spite, claims Imran Khan
Former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan has accused Army Chief General Asim Munir of jailing his wife, Bushra Bibi, out of personal vendetta after being removed as ISI chief. Speaking from prison, Khan alleged Bibi was targeted without evidence, denied basic rights, and subjected to inhumane conditions. He claimed the May 9, 2023 unrest was staged to dismantle his party and called the judiciary 'complicit.' Khan demanded a judicial probe into what he called state-sponsored repression of his political movement.
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'London plan' allegations resurface
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From behind bars, Imran Khan has launched some of his most scathing accusations yet against Pakistan's military leadership. In a public post on Monday, the former prime minister said Army Chief General Asim Munir was using his power to exact revenge on Khan's wife, Bushra Bibi, following a personal falling out.Khan claimed the feud dates back to his tenure in office, when he removed Munir from the role of Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). According to Khan, Munir then sought to contact Bibi through back channels.'As Prime Minister, when I removed General Asim Munir from the post of DG ISI, he sought to approach my wife Bushra Bibi through intermediaries to discuss the matter. Bushra Bibi categorically declined, saying that she had no involvement with such affairs and would not meet him,' Khan wrote on X.He alleged that Munir's 'vindictive nature' led directly to his wife's imprisonment.Khan, who has been in Adiala Jail since mid-2023, said Bushra Bibi had been wrongfully jailed for 14 months and described the conditions of her detention as appalling.'It is General Asim Munir's vindictive nature that is behind Bushra Bibi's unjust 14-month incarceration and deplorable inhumane treatment in prison,' he wrote.He added that she had been charged repeatedly without proof.'She was accused of aiding and abetting, an allegation for which no proof has ever been presented, and she is arrested in one false case after another. She is a private citizen, a homemaker with no political involvement.'Khan also said he had been denied contact with her for over four weeks, including a court-approved visit scheduled for June 1.'According to jail regulations, I was scheduled to meet her on June 1 but even that meeting was denied, in complete violation of court orders,' he wrote.Khan did not stop with accusations against the army. He repeated claims that the violent protests on May 9, 2023, were part of a wider scheme to eliminate his political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).'The way my wife has been targeted for personal vengeance is unprecedented. Even during Pakistan's darkest periods of dictatorship such a thing never happened,' Khan said.He asserted that the unrest and subsequent crackdown were part of the so-called 'London Plan.''Under this premeditated plan, I and several of my party leaders and workers were unlawfully imprisoned. Our democratic mandate was brazenly stolen, and corrupt individuals — Sharifs and Zardaris — were imposed upon the nation,' he said.He accused the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of resorting to fascist tactics, including violence and fabricating criminal cases against PTI members.Khan directed sharp criticism at the Pakistani judiciary, accusing it of being politically compromised and failing to act impartially. He said judges had refused to examine CCTV footage from the May 9 violence, which could potentially exonerate PTI workers.'Despite repeated demands, they refuse to summon or examine the stolen CCTV footage from May 9, 2023. Not a single judge has the courage to demand those tapes and deliver a verdict based on evidence. We are innocent. Our people are being sentenced without evidence and without the right to a fair trial,' Khan said.He called for a judicial commission to investigate the deaths of unarmed protesters during the May 9 and November 26 demonstrations.In his post, Khan linked the current judiciary's performance with past controversial figures in Pakistan's legal history.'The judiciary in Pakistan has never been more disgraceful than it is today. In the past, there was Justice Munir, whose unjust decisions earned him global notoriety. Today, Justice Qazi Faez Isa is following in the same footsteps,' he wrote.'The entire judicial system seems complicit, driven not by justice but by a desire to protect their own jobs and privileges.'The backdrop to Khan's remarks is a year-long crackdown on PTI. On May 9, 2023, protests erupted following Khan's arrest. Demonstrators damaged military installations and government property. Authorities responded with mass arrests and prosecutions.Last week, a Pakistani court sentenced 11 PTI supporters—including a sitting lawmaker—for their involvement in the Islamabad protests. They were charged with inciting violence and vandalism.Khan's post, which coincides with growing international attention on Pakistan's human rights record, is the latest in a series of public appeals as he continues to face multiple legal battles. Despite his incarceration, Khan maintains that the charges are politically motivated.(With inputs from PTI)
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