By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi approached the Supreme Court on Friday, urging the chief justice to help arrange a meeting between jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his personal doctors amid growing concerns over his health following a recent eye procedure.
Afridi, speaking to reporters outside the apex court in Islamabad, said the request followed a widespread national worry about Khan’s condition. “The whole nation is concerned about the health of the country’s most popular leader, Imran Khan,” he said, adding that he aimed to facilitate the meeting with the chief justice’s assistance.
The move came a day after federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed that Khan, the founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, had undergone a brief medical procedure for an eye ailment at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad. Tarar described the intervention as a “20-minute” process conducted on the night of Jan. 24, with Khan returning to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi shortly afterward.
Afridi warned that PTI would outline its next steps if efforts to secure the meeting failed. He expressed frustration over what he called a lack of justice in the courts, noting that cases involving Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, had not been scheduled for hearings in a year. “Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi’s cases have not been listed for one year. If the cases are listed today and we are provided justice, Khan sahib and Bushra Bibi, along with other leaders, will be released from prison within half an hour,” he claimed. “We were left with no option, so we opted for the only one available,” Afridi added, referring to the court approach.
The chief minister’s visit to the Supreme Court followed a protest outside Adiala jail on Thursday, where he and other PTI lawmakers and workers had gathered after reports of Khan’s hospital visit surfaced. Afridi said he had camped overnight at the site with PTI general secretary Salman Akram Raja, but the group dispersed around 3 a.m. In response to questions about ending the demonstration, he simply stated, “I have come here.”
Separately, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan and senior leader Babar Awan held a press conference at Islamabad’s KP House on Friday, focusing solely on Khan’s health. Gohar demanded that physicians from Shaukat Khanum Hospital, including Dr. Faisal and Dr. Asim, be permitted to examine Khan.
He said neither the party nor Khan’s family had been notified about the treatment. “Secrecy is cancer to democracy. His (Imran Khan’s) family is worried due to his health,” Gohar said.
Awan warned that withholding Khan’s medical report could lead to “grave consequences,” adding that the party and its supporters were deeply anxious about the former premier’s well-being. The PTI has repeatedly raised alarms over Khan’s health since Tuesday, prompting Tarar’s confirmation. Raja, speaking outside the Supreme Court on Friday, accused the government of hiding details for days and misleading the public. He claimed Khan had undergone eye surgery at Pims and was being denied basic human rights in custody. “The government acknowledged the situation only on Thursday, after which PTI representatives went to Adiala Jail,” Raja said. He noted that Imran’s family was not informed about the hospital transfer.
A large contingent of PTI leaders assembled outside the Supreme Court after again being refused permission to meet Khan. Raja said he and lawyer Latif Khosa tried to meet Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, but the chief justice was absent from his chambers. On the chief justice’s instructions, they instead met the court registrar, who was briefed on the matter, and the attorney general was also informed. “We have decided to sit here,” Raja said, cautioning that if Khan’s fundamental rights were ignored, “no one’s rights will remain protected.”
Khan, ousted as prime minister in 2022, remains incarcerated on multiple charges, with his party alleging political persecution. The government denies the claims, insisting legal processes are being followed.
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