Pakistan’s ex-PM Imran Khan moved to hospital from jail after court order

Khan, who was voted out of the office in April 2022, has been in prison for more than three years.

Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan has been transferred from prison to a hospital in Islamabad after the country’s top court ordered an independent medical board to examine him.

Khan, 73, was moved early on Friday from Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail to the private Shifa International Hospital in the capital under tight security. His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party confirmed the transfer but did not provide any further details.

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The government did not immediately comment, but Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, hours earlier, said that the government would fully comply with the Supreme Court’s ruling.

The transfer followed a Supreme Court order on Tuesday directing authorities to move the imprisoned former leader to hospital within two days. The court said an independent medical board should assess Khan’s condition and include his personal physician.

The order followed a report submitted to the court on Monday by Adiala jail’s superintendent, detailing an August 10 assessment by a cardiac board. The report recorded fluctuating blood pressure and anxiety that it said was linked to Khan’s restricted contact with his family.

The government had challenged the order, but officials said preparations for Khan’s transfer were completed on Thursday.

Security was tightened around the hospital ahead of the move. A senior official said hundreds of police and paramilitary personnel had been deployed in the area.

Khan’s family and his party have repeatedly appealed to the courts over his health during the past year, particularly concerns about the vision in his right eye.

Courts have twice declined similar requests to move Khan to hospital since February. In one case, the Islamabad High Court instead ordered an assessment by a medical board.

Khan was voted out of office by parliament in April 2022. He has been in prison since August 2023, when a court convicted him in a case involving the sale of state gifts received while he was prime minister.

The former cricket star and his wife Bushra Bibi have since been convicted in several other cases. Khan and PTI have denied wrongdoing, saying the prosecutions are politically motivated.

Khan’s lawyer, Uzair Bhandari, said earlier the former prime minister is expected to remain in hospital until at least his next court hearing on September 16.

The hospitalisation is expected to be Khan’s longest period outside prison premises since his detention began in August 2023, drawing renewed attention to his health, legal battles and the future of Pakistan’s opposition movement.