‘Regime Change Happens Overnight’: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Ends 16-Hour Protest Outside Adiala Jail

Rawalpindi: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi ended his sit-in protest outside the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on Friday after being denied a meeting with former Pakistan Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Founder Imran Khan, who is lodged in the jail since 2023.

Chief Minister Sohail Afridi had been sitting outside the high-security jail for 16 hours, while barricades prevented him from entering the facility.

Notably, Sohail Afridi took charge as the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa last month and said that his first priority was to ensure the release of Imran Khan from jail.

Despite his determined efforts to meet Imran Khan, Afridi has been denied access to him. “I have visited eight times but they didn't let me meet our leader. Infact, they blocked my passport.” He added, “Whatever you are doing is inciting hatred and is increasing differences among people.”

‘Entire Pakistan Is Watching’

Reacting strongly to the repeated denial of his request to meet Imran Khan, the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa stated that regime change happens overnight.

“Today we came to meet the Chief Justice so he can provide justice to Imran Khan and give us an opportunity to meet him. But unfortunately, the proceeding was held only for half an hour. After that the Chief Justice went into the chamber and some officials came to us and informed that the Chief Justice doesn't want to meet us,” he added.

He further said, “We urge all the judges and all the judicial officials that the whole Pakistan is watching you and we have seen in the past that regime change operations happen overnight.”

Calling the repeated denials “unacceptable” and “politically motivated”, he stated, “I am the representative of 45 million people of a province, coming for the eighth time. Why am I not being allowed to meet Imran Khan?”

He said that everyone has witnessed that from October 27 to November 27, jail authorities have barred us from meeting Khan and, hence, they do not have any news about him.

“We all witnessed yesterday, that on both national and international media there were some reports and rumours regarding Imran Khan's health. So we requested the jail authorities to allow us meet him for just 2-3 minutes. We told them that we won't discuss any politics, we will just ask him about his health but they refused and so we waited the whole night. In the morning we…saw…people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa being harassed there," Afridi added.

‘Sister Targeted Just To Weaken Imran Khan’

The Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said the even doctors and the sisters of Imran Khan do not have any updates about him. 

He also acknowledged that Khan's sister Aleema Khanum was manhandled while peacefully staging a sit-in protest outside the jail. “The whole Pakistan witnessed what happened. His sister was harassed on the road and dragged by her hair even though she doesn't have anything to do with politics. She just wanted to meet her brother,” Afridi added.

He claimed that she is being targeted just to weaken Imran Khan and his family. “Khan's nephew is still in military custody. All this is done, just to weaken a strong leader,” Afridi further said.

‘Imran Khan Will Never Bow Down’

Expressing his concern over the authority's aim to weaken Imran Khan, Sohail Afridi said that Imran Khan has never bowed down before them and will never bow down before them in the future as well.

Also Read- ‘Denied Access For 8th Time’: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Visits Adiala Jail Amid Imran Khan’s Death Rumours