The silence surrounding former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has entered its 24th day, with no communication from him, no court-mandated family visit permitted, and no access granted to PTI leaders or lawyers. Against this backdrop, supporters and family members are clinging to his last post on X — made on November 5 — as the only message that may offer clues to what is happening behind the walls of Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail.
That November 5 statement, issued after Imran met one of his sisters on November 4, directly named one man six times: Army Chief General Asim Munir. Khan wrote that “all power rests in the hands of one man” and accused Munir of placing the country under “Asim Law” instead of constitutional rule. He described Munir as “the most tyrannical dictator in history” and alleged that he was running Pakistan single-handedly while using every tool available — legal, institutional and coercive — to crush the PTI and silence him.
In the post, Khan claimed that he and his wife Bushra Bibi were being subjected to “every form of cruelty,” and that large-scale persecution of PTI workers was taking place under Munir’s directives, with no regard for women, children or the elderly. Khan accused Munir of manipulating the legal system to block hearings and prolong his imprisonment. He vowed that he would “neither bow down nor submit” and rejected any negotiations with what he called a “puppet government” under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Since that post, no further message has surfaced. Even weekly family visitation — previously ordered by the courts — has been blocked. This has triggered protests outside Adiala Jail, with PTI supporters demanding “proof of life.” The government has remained silent, while jail authorities have issued only one line: Khan is “in good health.”
The enmity between Imran Khan and General Asim Munir is longstanding and deeply personal. The struggle, however, is no longer limited to individual rivalry. Munir has consolidated unprecedented power through constitutional amendments that grant him lifetime military control and immunity. With Khan emerging as the strongest anti-establishment figure in Pakistan and a political threat capable of commanding mass support, his incarceration has become an essential pillar of Munir’s authority. The power struggle has also touched ethnic and regional dynamics, particularly the Pathan-Punjab divide, with Imran’s popularity among Pashtuns seen as a challenge to Punjab-dominated military rule.
With rumours swirling about Khan’s well-being and international pressure gradually building, his November 5 message remains the only first-hand account made public in nearly a month. For PTI workers and family members, it is proof that Khan understood both the threat and the motivations before communication was cut off. For the Pakistani establishment, however, the question persists: if Imran Khan is alive and well, why is he being denied all visitors and why has the state not allowed even a photograph, audio clip or written message in 24 days?
