The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the Adiala Jail administration to shift incarcerated former Prime Minister Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital for medical assessment and treatment by its next hearing.
In its short order, the court also directed authorities to submit the complete medical record of the PTI founder, while directing the party against politicizing its leader’s health condition.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed and comprising Justices Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Ishtiaq Ibrahim issued the order while hearing petitions concerning Khan’s medical treatment and meetings with his family members.
During today’s proceedings, Justice Waheed questioned Islamabad’s Advocate General regarding Khan’s complete medical record, observing the material submitted before the court was merely a summary. “What is the restriction on providing the complete medical record? We want the complete record, not a summary,” he remarked, adding that the submitted material indicated Khan’s pulse and heart condition were abnormal and his vital organs had started being affected.
Justice Afghan questioned whether the report’s recommendation for angiography could be performed at the jail. The Islamabad advocate general replied that the angiography could be conducted at a hospital outside the prison.
PTI lawyer Uzair Bhandari, meanwhile, argued that the cause of Khan’s blood clot—which reportedly led to his eye ailment—should be established. He requested Khan’s examination by the former premier’s personal physician, Dr. Aasim Yusuf, in the presence of his sister, Dr. Uzma.
Justice Waheed noted that Dr. Yusuf was a gastroenterologist, observing the report did not indicate any stomach-related problems. Bhandari then proposed the name of Dr. Faisal Sultan, with Justice Waheed observing no petitioner had questioned the qualifications of the doctors who had examined Khan.
Bhandari also assured the court that Dr. Uzma and Dr. Asim would not speak to the media after meeting the PTI founder.
The matter of media interactions after family and medical visits also came under discussion, with the Islamabad advocate general arguing a similar assurance was violated in the past and the matter was currently pending before the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Senior PTI lawyer Salman Akram Raja argued that if an assurance given by him had been violated through a media talk, responsibility should not be attributed to others. Justice Waheed observed that if contempt proceedings were initiated against officials for violating court directions, action could also be taken against Raja.
The judge said the PTI and Khan’s family would have to provide an undertaking that no media talk would take place after meetings with him.
Justice Afghan, meanwhile, urged the PTI to settle the matter internally and refrain from making Khan’s medical condition a political issue. “The PTI people need to decide one thing: there will be no politics over the founder’s medical condition,” he observed.
On the matter of restrictions on Khan’s meetings with family, Justice Waheed observed that such meetings were not a favor but a fundamental right. “What is the problem in arranging meetings with his sisters?” he asked, adding the state could not violate fundamental rights.
The advocate general informed the court Khan had met his sisters 48 times over the past three years, with the court directing details of the same before the next hearing. It also sought details of Khan’s meetings and communication with his sons, including call detail records.
The court questioned the implementation of directions issued by the IHC concerning Khan’s meetings, with the advocate general saying the matter was pending in an intra-court appeal. He said the government had not yet been served notice in the matter.
The court also summoned Adiala Jail officials to the next hearing before adjourning proceedings until Sept. 16.
A day earlier, the Adiala Jail superintendent had submitted to the court a medical report about Khan’s health, noting he was receiving treatment from leading ophthalmologists in Islamabad and Rawalpindi for central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO). It said his affected eye had “almost regained normal vision” and provided summaries of 39 medical check-ups conducted between Nov. 4, 2023 and Aug. 10, 2026.
It said Khan’s food and drinks were monitored thrice daily. It further said Khan and his wife had been meeting every Tuesday under jail rules, with 84 meetings held so far.