Imran Khan Undergoes Medical Tests After Court Order, Party Questions Hospital Change

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan was shifted from Adiala Jail to a hospital in Islamabad early on Friday for medical tests following a Supreme Court order and returned to prison after the examination was completed.

Khan was taken from the Rawalpindi jail after the Supreme Court directed authorities to arrange specialist medical care following concerns raised in a medical report about his health. The court had ordered his transfer to Shifa International Hospital and directed that a medical board, including his personal physician Dr Faisal Sultan, examine him.

However, the transfer later sparked a dispute over the implementation of the court's directions.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Khan was taken to the government-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) instead because of security concerns. He said Khan underwent a detailed examination by specialists, including an ophthalmologist, cardiologist and physician, and was declared “medically fit” before being taken back to Adiala Jail.

Khan's return to prison after the medical examination was completed was not, by itself, unusual. The controversy instead centres on whether authorities followed the Supreme Court's specific directions regarding his treatment and the hospital where the examination was to take place.

Khan's family and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have questioned why he was not taken to Shifa International Hospital as directed. His sister Uzma Khan and Dr Sultan disputed the government's handling of the transfer, while PTI has indicated that it may seek legal recourse over what it describes as non-compliance with the court's order.

The government, however, maintains that the change in arrangements was made because of security considerations and that Khan received a comprehensive medical examination.