Peshawar: Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province Chief Minister Suhail Afridi on Sunday said that systematic efforts are underway to suppress jailed former prime minister Imran Khan.

Addressing a public gathering in Kohat district, around 65 km southwest of Peshawar, Afridi also warned the federal government that if Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), of which he is a member, heads to Islamabad’s D-Chowk again, they will return “either with freedom or in shrouds.”

Last year, party supporters protested at the D-Chowk, and in a clash with police, six security personnel were killed, and dozens were injured.

At the gathering, Afridi urged party workers to remain ready whenever a call is given.

He also alleged that systematic efforts were underway to suppress 73-year-old Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023, facing multiple corruption cases.

The chief minister claimed that even meetings with judges were being obstructed and said those entrusted with safeguarding the public mandate had “robbed it” instead, adding that “our protectors have turned into our killers.”

Afridi was denied permission on Thursday to meet Khan for the 10th time by the Adiala jail administration, following which he alleged that Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi are being subjected to mistreatment in jail.

The chief minister also alleged massive corruption by the federal government, claiming it amounted to Rs 5.3 trillion, and said Pakistan’s total debt had surged to Rs 80 trillion.