Imran Khan meets wife Bushra Bibi, sister Noreen after 9 months; Sharif govt to challenge Pakistan SC order

After about nine months, former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday reportedly met his wife, Bushra Bibi, and his sister, Noreen Niazi, at Adiala Jail for the first time this year. The meetings came a day after Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered that Khan be shifted from prison to a hospital amid concerns over his health.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief had a meeting of about 15 minutes with Noreen and another lasting around 30 to 35 minutes with Bushra Bibi, the Express Tribune reported, citing jail sources. The top court has directed that Khan be moved to Islamabad’s Shifa International Hospital within 48 hours and remain there till September 16, according to his spokesperson Naeem Haider Panjutha.

Meeting at Adiala Jail

During her meeting with Khan, Noreen reportedly briefed him on the Supreme Court’s order. She also asked about his health and discussed other ongoing legal matters with him. She later confirmed that she had met Khan, but did not speak to reporters. Noreen then left Adiala Jail with her sisters Aleema and Uzma Khan.

The three sisters had reached the Dahgal checkpoint leading to the jail after the court order. Police initially stopped them there, but later allowed only Noreen to proceed towards the prison.

What the Supreme Court said

The order followed repeated demands from Khan’s family and his party for medical treatment. Last year, Khan’s son repeatedly raised concerns about his worsening health, while his lawyers said he had suffered a significant loss of vision in his right eye during his time in jail. Khan’s personal physician Faisal Sultan and his sister Uzma Khan, who is a doctor, are to be allowed to remain associated with his medical examination and treatment, according to the order details.

The court also said Khan would be allowed to meet his family once a week and speak to his sons by telephone twice a week. It warned against public gatherings in the hospital grounds or the use of information about his health for political gain, and fixed the next hearing for September 16.

PTI spokesperson Zulfikar Bukhari welcomed the order and said the party wished it had come sooner so that Khan’s eye and general health “wouldn't have deteriorated as much”. “He should remain in the hospital until all doctors are satisfied,” he added.

Government to seek review

Pakistan’s government, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, has said it will challenge the order to shift Khan to a private hospital. In a video statement, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said, “This order is not within the four walls of the law.” He said the government would seek a review and ask that Khan be treated in jail or at a public hospital, saying such arrangements at a private hospital are not normally made unless there is evidence that government hospitals cannot provide the treatment.

Khan has been in prison since August 2023 after being convicted in a series of cases, while he has maintained that the cases were politically motivated after his ouster from power in 2022. Tuesday’s meetings with his wife and sister came as the legal and political battle over his medical treatment moved to the Supreme Court.