Supreme Court Clears Imran Khan Hospital Petition for Bench Hearing
The Supreme Court on Friday accepted a chamber appeal filed by former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf founder Imran Khan, removing procedural objections that had prevented his medical-treatment petition from moving forward. The court directed its office to register the matter and place it before an appropriate bench at the earliest opportunity.
The underlying petition seeks Imran’s transfer from Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail to Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad for a comprehensive medical assessment. It also requests access to physicians selected by him, regular meetings with close family members and legal counsel, and the provision of updated medical information to his relatives.
The Supreme Court Registrar’s Office had previously returned the petition because it was not accompanied by a signed power of attorney. Imran challenged that administrative decision through the chamber appeal, arguing that the registrar had gone beyond procedural scrutiny by effectively preventing judicial consideration of questions involving constitutional and legal rights.
Advocate Uzair Karamat Bhandari appeared before the chamber of Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi to present the appeal. Following the hearing, the earlier objections were set aside, while the lawyer was instructed to submit the required signed power of attorney so that the petition could receive a formal case number and proceed through the court system.
The order does not itself approve Imran’s transfer to a private hospital or grant immediate access to his nominated doctors. Instead, it clears the procedural barrier that had kept the substantive requests from being examined by a judicial bench, which will now consider the medical, constitutional and custodial questions raised in the petition.
The court also directed that a related petition submitted by Imran’s sister, Dr Uzma Khan, be heard alongside his case. Her application challenges an Islamabad High Court decision that declined requests for his transfer to Shifa International Hospital, access to personal physicians and family, and disclosure of detailed medical information.
Imran’s legal team has asked for an examination by doctors including Dr Khurram Mirza, Dr Asim Yusuf, Dr Faisal Sultan and Dr Samina Niazi. The petitions maintain that independent medical access is necessary to assess his condition and ensure transparency, while the government says he is already receiving treatment arranged by the authorities.
The former premier has remained imprisoned since August 2023 and is serving a 14-year sentence in the £190 million corruption case, commonly known as the Al-Qadir Trust case. Concerns about his health intensified after reports that he had developed right central retinal vein occlusion, an eye condition for which government-provided treatment has been administered.
The dispute has become a significant political issue, with PTI leaders accusing the authorities of restricting access to Imran and withholding adequate information about his health. Government representatives have rejected those allegations, creating a continuing confrontation over prison conditions, medical safeguards and the rights available to a high-profile detainee.
Attention will now shift to the constitution of the Supreme Court bench and the scheduling of the registered petition. The next hearing is expected to determine whether the requested hospital transfer, independent examination and access arrangements are legally justified, and whether any immediate directions should be issued to jail and medical authorities.