Pakistan Govt Challenges Court Decision on Moving Ex-PM Imran Khan to Private Hospital
Pakistan’s government is set to challenge a Supreme Court order directing jailed former prime minister Imran Khan be moved to a private hospital for medical checks, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said late Tuesday.
Tarar said the ruling “does not fall within the four corners of the law” in a video statement shared on X by state broadcaster Radio Pakistan. The government plans to file a review petition arguing that Khan’s medical tests should instead be conducted at a government hospital. “Until such time as evidence or material is available to show that government hospitals are unable to provide this type of treatment or cannot do so, such arrangements are normally not made,” he said.
A three-judge bench ruled Tuesday that the 73-year-old former cricket captain should be transferred to Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad within two days. The court order also grants Khan weekly visits with his family and twice-weekly phone calls with his sons. His personal physician, Faisal Sultan, and his sister, medical doctor Uzma Khan, will be permitted to remain involved in his medical examination and treatment.
Judges cautioned against public gatherings at the hospital and warned that using information about Khan’s health for political purposes could lead the order to be reversed. The next hearing is scheduled for September 16.
Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were sentenced late last year to 17 years in prison after being convicted on multiple charges, which Khan maintains were politically motivated. He received eye treatment earlier this year, with his family and legal team saying he had lost most of the vision in his right eye.
Khan served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022 before being removed through a no-confidence vote amid tensions with Pakistan’s military establishment. His arrest in May 2023 sparked nationwide protests.
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