Pakistan court asked to restrict tweets from Imran Khan’s account amid incarceration

A petition has been filed in the Islamabad High Court seeking to bar former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan from posting on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) while serving his prison sentence.

Questions persist over how Khan’s accounts remain active, as posts frequently appear on X and other platforms. Many of these statements are sharply critical of the government and state institutions, fueling move by authorities to put a stop to the activity.

The petition, submitted by Advocate Ghulam Murtaza Khan and represented by Barrister Zafarullah Khan, named the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Adiala Jail’s superintendent, Khan himself, and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), as respondents.

The petitioner argued that Khan, who had been held at Adiala Jail since August 5, 2025, was prohibited under prison rules from using mobile phones, internet access, or social media.

Despite this restriction, posts continued to appear from his verified X account, many of which the petition described as “derogatory, defamatory, and inciteful” toward public officials, constitutional officeholders, and Pakistan’s military leadership.

The plea further alleged that prison authorities or visitors may have been enabling Khan’s access, or alternatively, that his account was being operated externally under his direction.

According to the petition, such posts not only defamed state officials but also “created hatred, resentment, and division within society,” posing risks to Pakistan’s political and diplomatic stability.

The petitioner requested that the NCCIA investigate the origin and operators of Khan’s online activity, while urging the PTA to regulate or restrict such posts.

It also called on Adiala Jail authorities to enforce prison discipline more strictly. Ultimately, the petition sought a court order prohibiting Khan or his team from posting on X during his incarceration.

Barrister Zafarullah Khan, who represented the petitioner, was recently appointed as amicus curiae by the IHC in Justice Tariq Jahangiri’s alleged fake degree case.

Meanwhile, Khan has resisted attempts to question him directly about his social media activity.

Two days ago, he refused to meet an NCCIA team that visited Adiala Jail to interrogate him over the management of his accounts. Jail sources said the investigators waited for two hours, even after Khan declined to see them.