- Internal war has erupted within overseas chapters of the PTI.
- PTI sources say no official meeting with Imran Khan’s sons directly.
- Khan’s sons met congressmen Brad Sherman, Mike Levin, others.
WASHINGTON/LONDON: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s sons have returned to London after meeting several congressmen – but without securing any official meeting with the Donald Trump administration to raise the issue of their jailed father Imran Khan.
An internal war has erupted within overseas chapters of the PTI, mainly the US branch of PTI which took it upon itself to organise these meetings. The PTI leaders have blamed each other for failing to secure any big meeting, impactful congressional hearing or any media interviews with any prominent US media platform.
According to posts shared by PTI USA leader Sajjad Burki, Imran Khan’s sons — Sulaiman Khan, 28, and Kasim Khan, 26 — met congressmen Brad Sherman, Mike Levin from California, Gregory Meeks, ranking member on House Foreign Affairs Committee, Jim Costa, Ted Lieu, Bill Huizenga, Andy Harris and Joe Wilson.
Incarcerated PTI founder’s sons met with US President Donald Trump’s key aide Richard Grenell as they kicked off a campaign calling for their father’s release from prison, but sources within the PTI said this meeting was not planned and held as part of Grenell’s already-planned meeting with a Sikh delegation.
Trusted sources in PTI said: “There was no official meeting with Imran Khan’s sons directly, by anyone from the Trump administration. Its true they met Ambassador Grennell, but this is outside the place where he was actually meeting with a Sikh delegation. He didn’t get to have an in-depth conversation, as they were part of the larger Sikh group he had a pre-scheduled meeting with. Obviously, he saw them and met them there. More photo ops and optics than anything else.”
Another PTI source said Grennell reached out to his staffer Jesse Oney and questioned about the sudden meeting. He was not happy about this as he wasn’t even prepared. Yes, Grenell had to indirectly mention PAKPAC. That was the only request that came to the office. Otherwise it’s a conflict of interest, and Grenell could get in trouble. PAKPAC provides that cover. Those who did these meetings were focused more on their own projection, rather than the release of Imran Khan.”
One of the persons involved in arranging the meeting said the meetings were successful. “We are aware that a group is trying to create an impression that these meetings were not successful. Imran Khan’s sons met the key congressmen and raised the issue of their father and that’s all that matters. We were focused on substance, not media publicity and PR.”
The person accepted that there was no official US meeting with Khan’s sons. However, he said Ambassador Grenell promised he would raise the issue, and he tweeted too.
Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at the Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the protests of May 9, 2023.
Grenell, the US special presidential envoy for special missions, posted on X that he had met with Sulaiman and Kasim in California, urging them to “stay strong”.
“There are millions of people around the world who are sick of political prosecutions. You are not alone.”
