Barrister Salman Safdar met former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail on Monday, November 2, for 40 minutes. Safdar said it was his first meeting with Khan in seven months and his first with Bushra Bibi in 11 months, after repeated applications.
Access to Khan has become a legal issue in itself, with courts repeatedly asked to intervene over meetings. A short, long-delayed session therefore matters for how his defence team prepares appeals and pending cases, not only as a personal visit.
Safdar said in a post on X that Adiala Jail authorities facilitated the meeting at 4:30 p.m. He described the 40-minute session as insufficient to cover all cases and legal matters, according to Dawn, Geo News and Business Recorder.
Safdar added that both Khan and Bushra Bibi briefed him on their health conditions and living conditions. They also gave him fresh instructions for some legal matters and cases, he said.
PTI central information secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram told Dawn he had spoken to Safdar in detail. Akram said Safdar told him the meeting was held in connection with several applications filed in courts to arrange meetings with Khan.
Khan has been held at Adiala Jail since August 2023, following his removal from office in April 2022. He faces multiple corruption and terrorism-related cases, and is serving prison sentences in the Al-Qadir Trust case and a Toshakhana reference, according to Geo News and Business Recorder.
Courts have previously set terms for access. Dawn and Business Recorder report that the Islamabad High Court has allowed Khan meetings twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with family members, lawyers and associates.
Earlier access also came only after court directions. Safdar’s last publicly reported meeting with Khan was on April 8, a day after the Islamabad High Court directed authorities to arrange it, Business Recorder reported. An earlier meeting on February 10 took place on the Supreme Court’s orders, after concerns were raised about Khan’s health.
Confirmed so far is the meeting itself, its 40-minute length and the fresh instructions Safdar said he received. No detailed public update has been released on specific health findings or the exact instructions, Centreline reported. Dawn reported that PTI’s political committee planned to reconvene within two days to devise a strategy for securing Khan’s release.
