Pakistan’s government filed a review petition on August 19 challenging the Supreme Court’s August 18 order to transfer jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan to the private Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad for medical assessment and treatment within two days [1, 2, 3, 4]. Khan, 73, has been imprisoned since August 2023 in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, serving a 14-year sentence on corruption charges his party says are politically motivated [1, 2, 5, 3, 4].
The Supreme Court allowed Khan access to his personal doctor, weekly family meetings, and phone calls twice a week with his sons living in London [3, 4]. It barred Khan’s family, political party, and lawyers from publicly discussing his health until the next hearing on September 16 [3].
The government argues the court order is unlawful, bypasses legal procedures, and requests Khan’s medical tests be done in a government hospital instead of a private one [1, 2, 3, 4]. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said, "This order is not within four walls of the law" and that treatment for convicted prisoners should happen inside jail or public hospitals, not private facilities [1, 2, 5, 3].
Legal expert Osama Malik said Khan remains a convicted prisoner without bail or suspended sentences. "He will remain a prisoner, and the hospital executive ward shall serve as a sub-jail," Malik said [1, 5].
Despite imprisonment, Khan remains politically popular. Candidates backed by him performed strongly in Pakistan’s February 2024 elections [1, 5]. Khan’s adviser Sayed Zulfi Bukhari denied any political deal behind the court’s hospital transfer decision, saying, "There is no deal between Imran Khan and anyone. This is the Supreme Court’s decision, which is very much welcomed" [1].
Following the court order, Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi and other family members visited him at Adiala Jail on August 18 [3].
The next hearing on Khan’s detention and hospital transfer case is scheduled for September 16, when the court is expected to further review the matter [3, 4].
