Court Order
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has directed jail authorities to ensure that former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, are not kept in solitary confinement. The ruling, delivered by a single bench comprising Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro, also set out provisions for family meetings, telephone conversations, reading material, and medical care for Khan. The verdict was announced after being reserved on August 6, following hearings on petitions challenging the couple's alleged solitary confinement.
The petitions were filed by Aleema Khanum on behalf of Imran Khan and Mubashra Khawar Maneka, Bushra Bibi's daughter. The court held the petitions to be maintainable, citing principles from earlier cases. As part of the order, jail authorities were directed to facilitate a meeting between Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi in accordance with prison rules, and to allow Khan's family members to meet him as permitted under those rules.
The court also ordered authorities to arrange phone calls between Khan and his sons, while specifying that such calls should be withdrawn if recordings of the conversations were being used for political purposes. Additionally, the jail was directed to provide Khan with newspapers and books daily and to ensure that he receives medical facilities in accordance with applicable prison rules.
The superintendent of Adiala Jail was specifically directed to ensure that Bushra Bibi is not kept in solitary confinement and to submit an implementation report to the court within 15 days. The court directed strict compliance with its orders.
Context of Detention
Imran Khan, 73, and Bushra Bibi have been in custody since August 2023. Khan is serving prison terms in corruption and related cases. Bushra Bibi was first jailed in January 2024 after being convicted in a corruption-related case, released on bail in October 2024 after nearly nine months in custody, and arrested again in January 2025 following another corruption conviction; she remains at Adiala Jail.
Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and his supporters have maintained that the cases are politically motivated, while the government has rejected allegations of mistreatment. The government has defended its decisions regarding Khan's detention and medical treatment, citing security concerns.
Related Proceedings
The IHC order comes as Khan's detention and medical treatment remain the subject of separate proceedings before the Supreme Court. On August 18, the Supreme Court declined an application by Khan's sister Uzma Khan seeking an early hearing of her contempt petition. The petition contends that transferring Khan to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) breached the Supreme Court's direction that he remain admitted at an Islamabad hospital until the next hearing on September 16.
The Supreme Court rejected the request for an early hearing under its case-fixation policy, noting that 94 other criminal original petitions in the same category were pending. The contempt petition is listed for September 16 before a three-member bench comprising Justices Shahid Waheed, Naeem Akhtar Afghan, and Ishtiaq Ibrahim.
Khan was taken to PIMS on the night of August 20-21 for a medical procedure and diagnostic examinations and was later returned to Adiala Jail. The Supreme Court had previously ordered that Khan be shifted to the privately run Shifa International Hospital. According to the hospital administration, two specialists from Shifa International Hospital participated in Khan's eye examination at PIMS.