Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered authorities to transfer imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan to a private hospital in Islamabad for a medical examination and directed prison officials to restore his regular contact with family members.
According to United News of Bangladesh, a three-member bench ruled that Khan should be taken to Shifa International Hospital in the capital within the next few days. There, he will undergo a medical examination by a board of specialists, which will include one of his personal physicians, Faisal Sultan, as per his lawyers and party officials. Furthermore, the court instructed prison authorities to allow Khan weekly meetings with his family members and regular telephone conversations with his sons.
Khan's family and personal doctors have consistently voiced concerns over his health and their restricted access to him. Earlier this year, authorities suspended prison visits after intelligence reports suggested a potential attack on the facility. The former prime minister had previously petitioned the Supreme Court, seeking his transfer from the high-security Adiala prison in Rawalpindi to a hospital, along with the ability to consult his personal doctors, family members, and lawyers.
Salman Akram Raja, Khan's lawyer, stated that the court's decision was driven by concerns about his client's health, emphasizing that access to medical treatment is a constitutional right in Pakistan. Raja also appealed to Khan's supporters not to gather outside the hospital upon his arrival, as such gatherings could disrupt other patients.
Earlier this year, Khan was taken multiple times to a government hospital for treatment of an eye problem. Concerns about his eyesight increased in January when his family reported that he had lost about 85% of the vision in his right eye, a claim the government contested, later asserting that his vision had improved by around 70%.
The former cricket star-turned-politician has been incarcerated since 2023 following a conviction in a corruption case. His removal as prime minister in April 2022, following a parliamentary no-confidence vote, has been a point of contention. Khan claims his ousting was part of a US-backed conspiracy involving political rivals and former army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, allegations denied by Washington, Pakistan's military, and his political opponents.
Despite his imprisonment and ongoing legal battles, Khan continues to be a significant political figure in Pakistan, maintaining a substantial popular following.