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Pakistan’s government will challenge a Supreme Court order directing authorities to transfer jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan to a private hospital, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said in a video statement.
The move could dash hopes among Khan’s party and family, who have been calling for better access to healthcare and visitation rights for the former premier. It could also fuel public discontent over the treatment of the popular cricketer-turned-politician.
Khan, 73, has been imprisoned in the garrison city of Rawalpindi since August 2023 after being convicted in a series of cases. He has maintained that the cases are politically motivated and stem from his falling-out with the country’s powerful military and his removal from office the previous year.
The Supreme Court’s order on Tuesday, seen by Reuters, directed the government to transfer Khan to the private Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad within two days and allow him access to his personal physician.
“This order is not within the four walls of the law,” Tarar said in a video-recorded statement issued on Tuesday night.
He said the authorities had reviewed the ruling and decided to approach the court seeking a review of the decision.
Under the law, a convicted prisoner must be treated either inside the jail or at a public hospital, Tarar said. He added that the review petition would seek a modification of the court’s order.
Khan’s sons repeatedly expressed concern about his deteriorating health last year, while his lawyers said he had suffered significant loss of vision in his right eye during his imprisonment.
His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party welcomed the Supreme Court’s order and called for it to be implemented “immediately, fully, and without delay”.
