A Missing Leader, An Unchecked General
Pakistan is once again in turmoil, and at the centre of this storm stands Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi, the man who once lifted the 1992 World Cup and the hopes of a nation.
Thirty-three years after that triumph, the former Prime Minister and cricket icon has become a symbol of defiance for millions. Yet today, he remains unseen for 25 days, held in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, as disturbing rumours of his death circulate across social media.
These fears escalated after his sisters, Noreen Niazi, Aleema Khan, and Dr Uzma Khan, alleged they were brutally assaulted outside the prison for merely seeking a meeting with their brother. Their claim, coupled with an Afghan media report alleging Imran Khan “succumbed to mistreatment” in custody, has deepened public anxiety.
Pakistani authorities have issued formal denials, insisting he is alive and receiving medical care, but their refusal to release visual proof has only fuelled more suspicion.
Later, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the self-styled Balochistan also claimed that Khan had been assassinated in Adalia jail. In a post on X, it was alleged that Pakistan's intelligence agency, ISI, and Army chief General Asim Munir had hatched the conspiracy to kill the PTI chairman. “If this information is confirmed to be true, it marks the absolute end of terrorist Pakistan. The collapse of its last remaining legitimacy will begin the moment the truth is exposed to the world,” the post warned
Standing beside Imran in the public’s imagination is Bushra Bibi, the former First Lady long portrayed as his spiritual guide. Once revered as a mystic with political foresight, she too now sits behind bars, charged with corruption and unlawful marriage. Her silence has only magnified her symbolic status among supporters, even as authorities attempt to erode it.
While Imran Khan remains hidden, another figure has stepped into the spotlight. General Asim Munir, derisively nicknamed Pakistan’s “Field Marshal”, has cemented unprecedented authority. This week’s constitutional amendment, which rewrote Article 234, grants Munir lifelong legal immunity, sidelines the Supreme Court, and places the judiciary under executive control. It also elevates him as Pakistan’s first Chief of Defence Forces, formalising the military’s grip on power.
As a nation demands to know whether its most popular leader is alive, Pakistan’s democracy quietly slips deeper into military shadow.
