ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s jailed former prime minister, Imran Khan, whose party is not allowed to hold public rallies, used an audio clip generated by artificial intelligence (AI) to address supporters in a virtual rally on Dec 17.

It was the first event of its kind in the politics of the South Asian nation.

The audio clip was marred by Internet disruptions.

It was played over an AI-generated image of Khan which appears to show him speaking, during the Internet rally of his Tehreek-e-Insaf party.

It drew more than 1.4 million views when streamed on YouTube and was attended live on other social media platforms by tens of thousands of people.

“Our party is not allowed to hold public rallies,” Khan said in the speech, urging supporters to turn out in large numbers at the general election set for Feb 8, 2024. “Our people are being kidnapped and their families are being harassed.”

The disruptions to the live streaming fuelled transparency concerns about the upcoming election.

Social media users nationwide complained of slow Internet speeds and throttling, a technique telecommunications regulators use to choke streaming on apps.

Pakistan’s telecoms regulator said the interruptions were being investigated, but added that Internet accessibility overall appeared to be normal.

Khan’s speech was generated from a written version he had approved from prison, said his party’s officials.

The party staged the event because it faces a state-backed crackdown on physical gatherings, while its leader is blacked out of the media.

Khan, who has been jailed since Aug 5, when he was convicted and sentenced to three years on graft charges, is embroiled in dozens of court cases.

Some trials have been held in prison behind closed doors, which legal experts say infringes the right to fair proceedings.

Information Minister Murtaza Solangi of Pakistan’s caretaker government has been assigned to supervise the election.

Mr Solangi said the query on Internet disruptions could be referred to the telecoms regulator or the Ministry of Information Technology, saying: “I have no information about it.”

However, he did not respond to queries about whether it was a violation of free speech and assembly mandated by election laws for free and fair voting, which in this case could be pre-poll rigging.

A political crisis has swirled around 71-year-old former cricket star Khan since his ouster in 2022 in a vote of confidence in Parliament. The party crackdown followed a May assault on military sites by supporters protesting against what was then his brief arrest.

Khan won the last general election in 2018.

His opponents say his victory was achieved with help from the military, which often plays an outsized role in making and breaking governments in Pakistan.

Khan blames his removal on the military as well, after a falling-out with generals over the appointment of the chief of Pakistan’s main spy agency, although the military denies supporting or ousting him. REUTERS