The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on Friday slammed the government for defying the apex court's order by preventing Imran Khan from being admitted to a hospital and threatened to launch nationwide protests if the former premier is not released from jail.
The Supreme Court on August 18 ordered that 73-year-old PTI founder be shifted from Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi to private-owned Shifa International Hospital for medical care and that he remain admitted till September 16.
Instead, Khan was taken to state-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad on Thursday night, where doctors from Al-Shifa were also present.
Deep Dive
What medical condition was Imran Khan diagnosed with during his hospital visit?
Why did the government prevent Imran Khan from being taken to Shifa International Hospital as ordered by the Supreme Court?
What implications could Imran Khan's alleged mistreatment in prison have on the public's perception of the judiciary in Pakistan?
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After undergoing medical examination at the PIMS, Khan was moved back to Adiala Jail.
The party has threatened to launch a long march towards Islamabad on September 26 if Khan remains incarcerated, demanding legal access, court-ordered medical treatment, and ultimately his release.
{{/usCountry}}The party has threatened to launch a long march towards Islamabad on September 26 if Khan remains incarcerated, demanding legal access, court-ordered medical treatment, and ultimately his release.
{{/usCountry}}Addressing the media in Islamabad on Friday, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi said the party would intensify its movement.
Terming the alleged violation of the apex court's order "unfortunate", Afridi said the party's legal team would initiate legal proceedings, warning that the situation could undermine public confidence in the judiciary and the rule of law.
He said Khan had instructed him to intensify the party's movement, adding that the campaign would now proceed "at a faster pace".
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Afridi claimed that the government and establishment were giving the impression that they were above the Constitution and law and had no fear of judicial orders.
"I will visit Hangu tomorrow and Buner the day after, and thereafter I will travel across Pakistan," he said.
He alleged that the judiciary and the public were being misled over the former prime minister's health.
Meanwhile, Khan's sister Uzma Khan also addressed a separate press conference in Islamabad alongside his personal physician Dr Faisal Sultan, sharing details of her visit to the jail on Thursday night and what transpired at PIMS.
After arriving at Adiala Jail, Uzma said she was taken to PIMS and asked to sit in an office. Later, she said she was taken to another room to meet his brother, who asked why he was taken to PIMS instead of Shifa.
"He (Khan) asked me what was happening (at PIMS), and I told him he would be taken to Shifa International Hospital for complete examination and, if required, any treatment. He was happy with that," Uzma said.
She said that Khan asked her to stay with him at PIMS, adding that he kept telling her just one thing: that he had been subjected to "cruelty".
"He said they were torturing them. He said a doctor who had visited him had concluded that his health deteriorated due to not having any human contact… He (Khan) said he was not being provided any reading material or television for the past 10 months," she said.
Quoting Khan, she alleged that no one listened to him in the jail when he complained about his health to prison doctors.
Uzma further said that a doctor examined him on August 10 and diagnosed him with severe anxiety due to "mental torture in solitary confinement", and that it was causing his blood pressure to rise.
"He also said that Bushra Bibi (Khan's wife) was also being kept in solitary confinement…He kept saying that they were subjecting him to cruelty," she said.
Uzma said Khan compared his treatment in detention to that of former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, who died suddenly in 2019, reportedly of a heart attack.
"Imran said that Morsi was killed in the same way… torturing him by keeping him in solitary confinement," she said.
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Khan also told his sister that he was provided newspapers and television for two days, but those facilities were taken back. She added that Khan had told her that a doctor had explained that his hypertension was caused by a lack of human contact.
Uzma said that after tests she was taken back to Adiala jail instead of the Shifa hospital.
Dr Faisal Sultan said he was taken to Shifa International Hospital while Uzma Khan was taken to PIMS. "As it was approaching Fajr (dawn), I was told that perhaps Imran Khan was not coming and that I should leave," he said.