With Pakistan’s Former PM Imran Khan In Jail, His Ex-Wife Fears Their Sons May Be Next

Last Updated:July 11, 2025, 15:28 IST

Jemima Goldsmith said her sons are not being allowed to speak to their father and that Pakistan’s government has warned they could be arrested if they try to visit him in jail.

Despite solitary confinement and a campaign of legal and media suppression, Imran Khan remains Pakistan’s most popular political figure. (AP)

Jemima Goldsmith, former wife of Pakistani jailed ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan, has accused the Pakistani government of targeting their sons, Sulaiman Isa Khan and Kasim Khan, by denying them contact with their father and threatening them with arrest if they attempt to visit him in prison. In a strongly worded post on X, Jemima said her sons have not been allowed to speak to their father, who has been held in solitary confinement in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail for nearly two years.

“My children aren’t allowed to speak on the phone to their father @ImranKhanPTI. He has been in solitary confinement in prison for nearly 2 years," she wrote. “Pakistan’s government has now said if they go there to try to see him, they too will be arrested and put behind bars. This isn’t politics. It’s a personal vendetta."

Her remarks came after Pakistan’s Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, warned that Khan’s sons would be arrested if they participated in the PTI protest in Pakistan, The Express Tribune reported.

In a separate statement shared on X, Kasim Khan denounced the treatment of his father. He stated that Imran Khan is not allowed to meet his family, lawyers and personal doctor and termed it a “deliberate attempt to isolate and break a man who stood for rule of law, democracy, and Pakistan."

Sulaiman And Kasim: Sons Who Stayed Away From Politics, Until Now

Sulaiman Isa Khan, born on November 18, 1996, and Kasim Khan, born April 10, 1999, are Imran Khan’s sons from his first marriage to Jemima Goldsmith. Both were raised in the UK following their parents’ divorce in 2004. While the brothers largely avoided the political spotlight for most of their lives, recent developments have pulled them into the international conversation.

Sulaiman has maintained a low profile, known for his interest in cricket and occasionally appearing with his father at family events. He is around 6’2" tall and is reportedly involved in business, though specific details are scarce.

Kasim, more publicly engaged in recent years, studied Islamic History at the University of Bristol and founded Mifu Marketing, a digital platform aimed at helping freelancers monetise their content. In the lead-up to the 2024 general elections in Pakistan, Kasim used social media to encourage people to vote for PTI.

Although raised in London and largely removed from Pakistan’s political turmoil, both sons have now emerged as vocal advocates for their father’s release.

Sons Speak Out After Months Of Silence

In May 2025, Sulaiman and Kasim Khan made their first public appeal regarding their father’s incarceration. Speaking in an interview with influencer Mario Nawfal on X (formerly Twitter), they described how they had exhausted legal avenues and were now appealing to the international community, including US President Donald Trump, to intervene.

“We’ve gone through every route that we thought would potentially get him out," said Kasim. “We never thought he would be in there a fraction of how long he’s been in there. And it’s only getting worse… So now we’ve decided the only route of taking action is to come and speak publicly."

The brothers said they were initially allowed limited phone contact with Imran Khan starting November 2023, but the calls were sporadic and “difficult to arrange."

“What we want is international pressure on Pakistan right now because currently he’s living in inhumane conditions. They’re not giving him basic human rights," Kasim added.

Family Joins Protest Movement, But Access Remains Blocked

Khan’s sister Aleema Khan recently joined the ongoing protest movement against his imprisonment. On a visit to Adiala Jail, Aleema—accompanied by her sisters Uzma and Noreen Khan, as well as PTI legal representatives—was denied permission to meet her brother.

Speaking to the media, she said Imran Khan had vowed to lead the protest from behind bars. “Imran Khan has said that he will lead the protest movement. He is free while in jail, but we are prisoners despite being outside," Aleema said.

She further revealed that Sulaiman and Kasim would join the movement once they returned from the United States. However, following Sanaullah’s threat of arrest, their ability to do so remains uncertain.

Imran Khan: From Prime Minister To Prisoner

Pakistan’s former PM Imran Khan, once celebrated for leading Pakistan to its 1992 Cricket World Cup victory, has been behind bars since August 2023, facing over 100 legal cases, including corruption, misuse of state secrets, and terrorism-related charges. The PTI founder was recently sentenced to 14 years in prison in a high-profile corruption case. The 72-year-old denies all charges, labelling them “politically motivated."

He has no children from his second marriage to Reham Khan (2015), and his current wife Bushra Bibi, whom he married in 2018, has five children from a previous marriage—two of whom are sons, making Imran their stepfather.

August 5, 2025, will mark two years of Khan’s incarceration.

News world With Pakistan’s Former PM Imran Khan In Jail, His Ex-Wife Fears Their Sons May Be Next