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

The Supreme Court ordered on Tuesday that Khan, Pakistan's most popular politician, be taken to the private Shifa International Hospital in the capital Islamabad within 48 hours for treatment, after his lawyers petitioned the court over concerns that his health was poor.

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.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar wrote on X that Khan was instead taken to the public hospital Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad, blaming the "security situation" caused by Khan's 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."

Tarar also said that Khan's sister, Uzma Khan, who is a medical doctor, was present during the examination.

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

Dozens of the 73-year-old's supporters had waited outside the hospital.

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

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.

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 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (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.

Ending decades of political dominance by dynastic parties, Khan was voted in by millions of Pakistanis who grew up watching him play cricket, where he excelled as an all-rounder and led the nation to a World Cup victory in 1992.

But PTI made little headway improving the country's finances, with galloping inflation, crippling debt and a feeble rupee undermining economic reform.

H.Jarrar--SF-PST