Pakistan SC returns contempt plea filed by Imran Khan’s sister over hospitalisation order violation

Islamabad, Aug 25 (IANS) Pakistan’s Supreme Court (SC) registrar’s office on Tuesday returned a contempt plea filed by the sister of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s sister, Uzma Khan, against the violation of the court’s August 18 order.

Speaking to reporters outside the Supreme Court, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Gohar Ali Khan said that the order issued by the apex court on August 18 had not been enforced and the party had sought an early hearing of the contempt plea, Pakistan-based leading daily The Express Tribune reported.

Gohar Ali Khan said he met the SC registrar, where he informed him that objections were raised to their plea and they were given back the file of their contempt petition. He said that the party would address the objections raised by the SC registrar’s office and file the contempt plea again.

On August 22, the PTI filed a contempt of court plea in the Supreme Court over the violation of the court’s August 18 order about shifting PTI founder Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital.

On August 18, the apex court ordered the authorities to transfer Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital and arrange weekly meetings between the PTI founder and his family.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani government has also filed a review petition before the SC and termed the apex court’s order “discriminatory in nature,” The Express Tribune reported.

Imran Khan has remained in prison since August 2023 after convictions that his party, PTI, has termed politically motivated. Since his ouster from office in 2022 through a no-confidence vote, Imran Khan has faced several cases, including allegations involving state gifts and an unlawful marriage case.

Last month, UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Alice Jill Edwards, expressed concerns over reports of Imran Khan’s detention conditions and his not getting access to proper medical care. She also urged Pakistan to restore humane conditions and allow the former PM to access medical examination and treatment of his own choice.

In a post shared on LinkedIn, Edwards mentioned that Khan has been kept in near-total solitary confinement for 33 months in a small, windowless cell and is often not allowed to have human contact for over two weeks continuously.

“Fmr PM Imran Khan has now been held in near-total solitary for 33 months in a small, windowless cell under 24-7 CCTV. Often more than 2 weeks continuously, without exercise or meaningful human contact. This far exceeds the MANDELA rules,” Edwards wrote in a post on LinkedIn.

“I am also concerned about reports that he is being denied proper medical and is suffering from serious medical issues that have not been treated appropriately, compounding a spinal injury from a 2013 accident and bullet wounds sustained in a November 2022 assassination attempt. I call on Pakistan to restore humane conditions and allow him his choice of medical examination and appropriate treatment,” she added.

In another post, Edwards expressed concerns over the detention conditions of Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and urged Pakistan to provide her access to appropriate medical treatment in line with international law.

–IANS

akl/sd/