ISLAMABAD — In a significant legal development on Friday, the Supreme Court of Pakistan accepted a chamber appeal filed by incarcerated former prime minister and PTI founder Imran Khan, ordering the early fixation of his petition before an apex court bench. Appearing before the chamber of Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, advocate Uzair Karamat Bhandari successfully argued against the earlier objections raised by the Supreme Court Registrar’s Office—which had returned the petition due to a missing signed power of attorney—leading the CJP to declare those objections null and void. The court directed the counsel to submit the required power of attorney, ordered the office to assign a formal case number, and ruled that a parallel petition filed by Imran’s sister, Dr Uzma Khan, be heard alongside the main case.
The legal challenge contests the Islamabad High Court’s earlier refusal to shift the former premier from Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail to Islamabad’s Shifa International Hospital, and seeks to secure unhindered access for his personal physicians—including Dr Khurram Mirza, Dr Asim Yusuf, Dr Faisal Sultan, and Dr Samina Niazi—alongside regular visitations from his family and legal counsel. Imran, who has been imprisoned since August 2023 over corruption and Toshakhana convictions, has faced growing concern from his party and family regarding his health, specifically concerning a right central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) eye condition. While the government strongly denies allegations of withholding appropriate medical care, the Supreme Court’s intervention paves the way for a judicial review of his healthcare and confinement conditions.
