ISLAMABAD: Jemima Goldsmith, the former wife of jailed ex-prime minister Imran Khan, on Thursday condemned what she described as a “personal vendetta” by the government, accusing authorities of threatening to arrest their sons if they attempt to contact their father or join a planned protest for his release from the notorious Adiala Jail. Khan, 71, a former cricket star who served as prime minister from 2018 until his ousting in April 2022 via a vote of no confidence, has been imprisoned since August 2023. He faces a series of legal cases, including corruption and terrorism charges. “My children aren’t allowed to speak on the phone to their father Imran Khan,” Goldsmith wrote on the social media platform X. “He has been in solitary confinement in prison for nearly two years. 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 doesn’t happen in a democracy or a functioning state...this isn’t politics. It’s a personal vendetta.” Her remarks came after Rana Sanaullah, the adviser to the prime minister on political affairs, warned that Khan’s sons could face arrest if they returned to Pakistan and joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s upcoming protest movement. “If Imran Khan’s sons come to Pakistan and join the movement, they will be arrested,” Sanaullah said. Asked to clarify, he added: “Why wouldn’t they be arrested? If they come here to lead a violent movement, then what will be the consequence of that?” Khan’s son Kasim Khan also criticised the treatment of his father, saying he has been held in solitary confinement for over 700 days. “He is denied access to his solicitors, not allowed visits from his family, fully cut off from us (his children), and even his personal doctor is refused entry,” Kasim wrote in a separate post. “This is not justice. It is a deliberate attempt to isolate and break a man who stood for the rule of law, democracy, and Pakistan.” Outside Adiala Jail, Khan’s sister Aleema Khan told reporters that Khan’s sons, Kasim Khan and Suleiman Khan, plan to travel to the United States first to raise awareness before considering a trip to Pakistan to join PTI’s political campaign. PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said it was within the sons’ rights to participate in political activities. “It is the right of the sons of the PTI founder to be a part of the movement,” Raja said, adding that both Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi are entitled to seek suspension of their sentences. “It is not wrong to come out for one’s rights. Benazir Bhutto also launched a movement.” Senior government ministers, however, downplayed the significance of the sons’ involvement. Senator Irfan Siddiqui of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said their return would not cause political disruption. “Imran Khan wants to bring his children into politics, but their presence will not cause any political upheaval,” Siddiqui said. “There will be no storm if his children come to Pakistan... His release depends on his actions.” Siddiqui also dismissed speculation about any imminent change in the provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying the current set-up would remain in place.