The federal government has challenged the Supreme Court’s interim order to shift Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital. The Chief Commissioner Islamabad has filed a review petition in the apex court through the Advocate General.
The petition came a day after the Supreme Court’s August 18 verdict. The court had ordered Imran Khan to be shifted to Shifa International Hospital for medical examination and treatment. The court had also directed the formation of a board comprising medical experts.
The government has cited the Pakistan Prison Rules 1978 in its petition. It maintains that there is a procedure in the rules for shifting a prisoner in jail to a hospital.
According to the petition, the Supreme Court’s interim order ignored this legal procedure. The government has requested the court to reconsider the decision and withdraw it.
The government has also raised objections to the procedure of hearing. The petition said that the matter came before the Supreme Court for the first time, but interim relief was granted without issuing formal notice to the parties concerned.
The petition also cited Article 10A. According to the government, an order should not be issued at the interim stage, ignoring the requirements of a fair hearing, which should appear to be final.
One of the government’s main objections is related to the transfer to a private hospital. Officials say they have no objection to providing necessary medical facilities to Imran Khan. However, the order for a private hospital for treatment raises questions about the general principles of the prison system.
On the other hand, the Supreme Court had issued its August 18 order on Imran Khan’s health concerns and request for medical access. The court directed the formation of a board of experts for a medical examination at Shifa International Hospital.
The court had also directed that Imran Khan’s personal physician be included in the medical assessment. In addition, weekly meetings with family members and phone calls with his sons living abroad were also ordered.
The PTI has welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision. The party maintains that Imran Khan should be given the required medical facilities and access to a personal physician. The government’s latest move has re-entered the legal debate.
Imran Khan’s lawyers and family have been demanding medical examinations and access to personal doctors for the past several months. His family has also expressed health concerns.
The government, on the contrary, says that Imran Khan is not being deprived of medical facilities. The authorities’ main objection is to the transfer to a private hospital and its legal procedure.
The dispute is not limited to the treatment of a prisoner alone. It also involves legal questions such as the medical rights of prisoners, the powers of the prison administration and the limits of court interim orders.
The government also fears that the court’s order for private medical facilities for a prisoner could set a precedent for other similar cases in the future. On the other hand, the main question before the court is to provide adequate and timely medical facilities to the prisoner.
Now the Supreme Court’s decision on the review petition will be crucial. The court will decide whether there is any legal or procedural flaw in the interim order of August 18 that requires reconsideration.
Thus, the matter that started with Imran Khan’s health has now become a broader legal debate related to prison laws, judicial authority and the medical rights of prisoners.
