Pakistan rejects UN opinion on ex-PM Khan’s detention, calls it ‘internal matter’

The Pakistani government on Tuesday rejected the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s opinion on jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s legal challenges, saying his detention is an “internal matter.”

In a statement aired by the state-run Pakistan Television, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said “the arrest of the PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf) founder and the pending cases are an internal matter of Pakistan.”

“The PTI founder is entitled to all rights under the national Constitution and laws, as well as international principles,” Tarar said, adding that Khan is currently in jail as a convicted prisoner.

The U.N. working group on Monday said Khan’s detention is “arbitrary and in violation of international law,” and he should be released immediately.

In an opinion, the group requested steps to “remedy the situation of Khan without delay,” which would be to release him “immediately and accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.”

Khan came to power in 2018, and was removed in a no-confidence vote in 2022. Since then, hundreds of cases have been registered against him, ranging from corruption to terrorism.

He is in jail since last August and was convicted in three cases ahead of general elections in February, in which his party-backed candidates won the most seats but could not form a government.

Khan and his party allege the cases were politically motivated to keep him out of power.

His jail sentence for illegal acquisition and sale of state gifts (Toshakhana case) was suspended, while his sentencing on charges of leaking state secrets was also overturned. But he remains in prison due to a conviction in an illegal marriage case and also faces charges related to May 9 violence, when people stormed military installations after his initial arrest.

The working group said Khan’s arrest, detention and prosecution in the first Toshakhana case, which said he concealed details of the state gifts he received, and the cipher case, which alleged that he leaked a secret cable, were “without any legal basis” and appeared to be “politically motivated to exclude his participation in the election.”

Calling on Islamabad to publicize the U.N. report “as widely as possible,” it added that the government had not responded to its communication dated last November.

Emphasizing “no trial” of Khan “should have taken place,” the 17-page document noted: “Given his age, Mr. Khan is currently facing an effective sentence of life imprisonment.”

It called on Islamabad to “ensure a full and independent investigation of the circumstances surrounding the arbitrary deprivation of liberty of Mr. Khan and to take appropriate measures against those responsible for the violation of his rights.”