Senior leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Tuesday expressed strong reservations over being denied a meeting with party founder Imran Khan at Adiala Jail, calling the move unconstitutional and against legal norms.

Speaking to the media after returning from jail, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said they had arrived on the government’s request but were not allowed to meet the party founder.

They said the leadership and the public wanted verified information about Imran Khan’s health and eye condition, stressing that family members and his personal physician should have been present during the medical examination.

Barrister Gohar said the continued denial of meetings had pushed the country into a political crisis, adding that leadership access had been restricted since February 2025. He described Imran Khan as the central figure in national politics.

He said PTI’s primary demand was the transfer of the party founder to Shifa International Hospital and unhindered access for his family and personal doctor. He rejected claims that PTI leaders had avoided visiting the jail, saying the party had been advised against symbolic visits without meaningful access.

Salman Akram Raja said they had visited as legal counsel, with several cases pending in the Supreme Court and high courts, making it their fundamental right to receive instructions from their client. He added that preventing family members from meeting Imran Khan was unconstitutional.

He further said transparency required the presence of family or personal doctors during medical checks, arguing that political leaders attending examinations served no practical purpose.

Both leaders confirmed that despite their names being on the visitors’ list, they were stopped at the Marble Factory checkpoint and forced to return.

Earlier, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said he had invited Barrister Gohar to be present during the medical examination and waited for an hour, but he did not arrive. He said PTI leaders and doctors were later briefed and expressed satisfaction with the treatment.

Mohsin Naqvi rejected claims of negligence, saying rumours about Imran Khan losing 85 per cent of his eyesight were baseless and that examinations had been conducted by leading public and private doctors. He said the medical report was now part of the official records.