Imran Khan slams Army chief for turning Pakistan into 'hard state'

Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday slammed Army chief Asim Munir for turning Pakistan into a "hard state" through force. The 73-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician has been in jail for over two years in multiple cases. "In its true sense, a hard state means a country where the supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law, justice, and democratic freedoms prevail...However, Asim Munir’s version of a 'hard state' means a system where all democratic pillars are crushed and replaced by 'Asim Law'," Khan said in a post on X.

"Let it be clear... no state can ever become 'hard' or strong without the support and consent of its people. The atrocities being committed under the so-called Asim Law are not strengthening the state; rather, they are weakening its very foundations," he said. Khan also claimed that he was kept in complete isolation in jail. "There has never been a greater example of political victimisation in Pakistan’s history. I am being denied basic facilities guaranteed under the jail manual," he said, adding that over the past 10 months, he had been allowed to speak to his sons only once — for two brief intervals of three minutes each.

Khan said that during his party's government, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa enjoyed peace as a result of sound policies. "But since the regime change, the situation has been deteriorating continuously... The current tensions with Afghanistan are deeply concerning. Hatred and confrontation serve no one's interest; only policies made by genuine representatives of the people can provide a lasting solution to terrorism," he said.

Zulfi Bokhari, a close aide of Khan, said on X that Imran Khan will be kept in complete isolation until October 29, with no one allowed to meet him." This is not just cruelty, it’s a blatant violation of fundamental human and prisoner rights," he added.