SC forms medical team to examine PTI founder
Imran claims only 15% vision left in right eye
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the formation of a medical team to examine former premier Imran Khan’s eye, after a report submitted in court quoted the PTI founder as claiming that “only 15 per cent” vision was left in his right eye.
The SC also directed that Imran be allowed to speak to his children. It was ordered that both the eye inspection and the phone calls be conducted before February 16 (Monday).
The instructions came as a two-member bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) YahyaAfridi and including Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan resumed hearing the case regarding the PTI founder’s living conditions in Adiala jail.
“The issue of Imran’s health is most important,” CJP Afridi observed, adding that “intervention was necessary”.
“We want to know the government’s stance on the matter of his (Imran’s) health,” the top judge said, at which Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) MansoorUsmanAwan affirmed that it was the state’s responsibility to provide medical facilities.
“If the prisoner is not satisfied, then the state will take measures,” AGP Awan added. CJP Afridi then noted that the issue of Imran’s “telephone calls with his children is also important”. “We are trusting the government. The government is in a good mood today,” he remarked.
PTI counsel Advocate Salman Safdar, who was appointed amicus curiae and met Imran at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail on Tuesday, had submitted a seven-page report to the SC regarding Imran’s living condition in the prison.
In his report, Safdar quoted Imran as telling him that “despite the treatment administered (including an injection), he has been left with only 15% vision in his right eye”.
Imran told Safdar that approximately “three to four months earlier, until October 2025, he had normal 6 x 6 vision in both eyes”. He then began experiencing persistent blurred and hazy vision, which he repeatedly reported to the then-jail superintendent but “no action was taken by the jail authorities”.
The report read: “[Imran] stated that he subsequently suffered a sudden and complete loss of vision in his right eye, following which an ophthalmologist from Pims Hospital, Dr Muhammad Arif, was called to examine him.
“According to [Imran], he was diagnosed with a blood clot that caused severe damage, and despite the treatment administered (including an injection), he has been left with only 15% vision in his right eye.”
Adding to Imran’s claims, Safdar said he “personally observed that the petitioner appeared visibly perturbed and deeply distressed by the loss of vision and the absence of timely and specialised medical intervention”.
“Throughout the meeting, the petitioner’s eyes were watery, and he repeatedly used a tissue to wipe them, reflecting physical discomfort,” the lawyer recalled.
However, during the hearing, the SC dismissed the request to have the condition of Imran’s eye examined in the presence of his family members.
On the request to provide some books to the PTI founder, AGP Awan said it would be done after consultation with eye doctors.
Recalling that the SC had received reports from Safdar and the Adiala jail superintendent, CJP Afridi said: “Most of the things in both reports are similar — the place is good, the facilities are fine.”
Noting that the issue of Imran’s meetings with his family members was pending before the Islamabad High Court (IHC), the top judge said it would be appropriate for the relevant forum to decide on that.
No access to personal physicians amid deteriorating eye condition: The report detailed Safdar’s meeting with Imran, the cell conditions, the facilities and amenities provided to the ex-premier, his living compound’s description, as well as the lawyer’s process of reaching the jail.
Safdar further quoted Imran as claiming that “regular and periodic blood tests” were not conducted.
While his personal physicians Dr Faisal Sultan and DrAsim Yusuf had previously been permitted access, “despite repeated requests and a deteriorating ocular condition, no such access was allowed during the relevant period”, the ex-premier was quoted as saying.
“[Imran] stated that for nearly three months, the only treatment administered consisted of eye drops, which resulted in no improvement and was followed by a major impairment of vision in his right eye,” Safdar said.
Imran also claimed that “despite being 73 years old and requiring dental consultation, no dentist had examined or treated him over the past two years, notwithstanding repeated requests”.
According to Safdar, Imran told him about “rapid and substantial loss of vision over the preceding three months while he was living and detained under the ‘care and custody’ of Abdul GhafoorAnjum”, the jail superintendent.
“This concern of his was neither taken seriously nor addressed by the relevant jail authorities,” Safdar was told. Upon inquiry, the jail staff informed the lawyer that Anjum had been transferred on Jan 16, 2026, and replaced by SajidBaig.
Safdar stated that upon inquiry, the jail superintendent informed him that Imran was currently under the care of Pims’ DrArif and that the on-duty jail doctor recorded the PTI founder’s vital signs three times daily. Agencies
