Sawt Falasteen - Ex-Pakistan PM Khan taken back to jail after hospital checks

The Supreme Court ordered on Tuesday that Khan, 73, be taken to the private Shifa International Hospital in the capital Islamabad for treatment, after his lawyers filed a petition over health concerns.

The ex-cricket captain and his wife Bushra Bibi, who is also his spiritual guide, were both sentenced late last year to 17 years in prison in a case Khan argues was politically motivated.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar wrote on X that Khan was taken to a public hospital instead of Shifa, blaming the "security situation" caused by supporters at the private clinic.

"A team of qualified doctors, including an ophthalmologist, a cardiologist and a physician, conducted a detailed examination of him and declared him medically fit," Tarar said.

"After the completion of this entire process, he was transferred back to Adiala Jail."

Provincial MP Sohail Afridi, a senior leader in Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, criticised the handling of the hospital visit.

The authorities "don't even take the court seriously", Afridi told a news conference in Islamabad.

"This is against the whole judicial system," he added, saying the party would "file a contempt of court case".

Hundreds of police, some wielding sticks, were deployed near Shifa late on Thursday, with roads leading to the hospital cordoned off ahead of the expected transfer.

Dozens of supporters had waited outside the hospital.

The court had warned against public gatherings on the hospital grounds or the use of information about Khan's health for political gain, cautioning that any breaches could lead to the order being reversed.

The next court hearing was set for September 16.

- 'Torture' -

The former prime minister received eye treatment at the same public hospital earlier this year, with his family and lawyer saying at the time that he had lost most of the vision in his right eye.

Khan's sister Uzma Khan, a medical doctor, was present during Friday's examination.

She told reporters at the same news conference Afridi spoke at that her brother "kept saying, 'I am not OK. I have no books, no human contact'".

"Only his eye was checked, nothing else," she added.

"We are not satisfied with the treatment. The hypertension is due to the lack of human contact. Solitary confinement is torture, and Khan has been subjected to it for the past 10 months."

Khan's personal physician, Faisal Sultan, whom the court said would be involved with the medical checks, told the news conference he had waited at Shifa hospital during the night before being told Khan would not be taken there.

Haleem Adil Sheikh, a senior PTI leader, told AFP there was hope in the party that Khan "would receive better treatment" after the court order.

But after changing the hospital and then moving Khan "back to jail, we've lost that hope as well", he said.

Khan was prime minister from 2018 to 2022 before being removed in a no-confidence vote during a political crisis over tensions between his government and the powerful military establishment.

He has since faced multiple legal cases on corruption and other charges, which Khan and his PTI party maintain are politically motivated.

His arrest triggered nationwide protests in May 2023, some of which turned violent and led to hundreds of arrests.

Z.AlNajjar--SF-PST