Updated

Updated · Hindustan Times · Aug 20

PTI Signals Reconciliation With Pakistan Military After Court Orders Imran Khan, 73, Moved to Hospital

Updated

Updated · Hindustan Times · Aug 20

PTI Signals Reconciliation With Pakistan Military After Court Orders Imran Khan, 73, Moved to Hospital

Q: Will Imran Khan actually honor his aide's promise of peace with the military if he is finally released from prison?

Probably not fully, though he may avoid an immediate direct clash if release depends on a broader accommodation. Bukhari’s remarks are the clearest signal yet from PTI that some in Khan’s camp want to lower tensions with the military. They came just after the Supreme Court ordered Khan moved to a private hospital, a ruling analysts read as a possible opening for de-escalation. PTI has also said it will obey the court’s instruction not to mobilize outside the hospital, which supports the idea of tactical restraint. But the main uncertainty is Khan himself. Bukhari acknowledged PTI leaders have not spoken with him for about eight months, and analysts quoted by Reuters warned that Khan’s own thinking may differ from that of aides operating outside prison. Khan’s last known public line was far more combative: he had accused army chief Asim Munir of tyranny and said he would neither bow nor submit. That makes it more likely that any “peace” would be conditional and tactical, not a durable reconciliation. Khan could choose not to provoke the military directly at first, especially if he is seeking medical access, legal relief, family contact and the release of other PTI detainees. Yet PTI is still planning a nationwide march, showing that pressure politics remains central to its strategy. So the safest reading is that Khan may temporarily soften his tone if released, but there is not enough evidence to say he would truly honor a lasting non-confrontational line toward the military.

3 articles · Updated · Hindustan Times · Aug 20

Zulfikar Bukhari said PTI could seek to mend ties with Pakistan’s military, adding Imran Khan would not go “loggerheads” with army chief Asim Munir if released.
Tuesday’s Supreme Court order to move Khan, 73, from prison to a private hospital within 48 hours prompted the softer tone, which Bukhari called a “new ray of hope.”
By Thursday afternoon, Khan had still not been transferred, and it remained unclear whether the government would try again to challenge the ruling after an earlier bid failed on technical grounds.
Bukhari said PTI was not in talks with the military but suggested Munir—whom he called Pakistan’s most powerful man—could quickly free political prisoners if he chose to ease tensions.
The remarks mark a sharp shift for PTI, whose supporters have long blamed the military for Khan’s 2023 imprisonment, though analysts say Khan himself may not back any accommodation.