Islamabad, September 14, 2026: The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) on Monday issued notices to the Attorney General for Pakistan and other parties on appeals filed by three inmates of Adiala Jail seeking treatment at private hospitals on the grounds that similar facilities were granted to PTI founding chairman Imran Khan.
A three-member FCC bench headed by Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan and comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Ali Baqar Najafi heard separate petitions challenging an Islamabad High Court (IHC) decision dismissing their pleas.
A single-member IHC bench had rejected the petitions on August 31, ruling that prisoners had no legal right to be transferred to a private hospital of their choice.
During Monday’s hearing, Justice Aamir Farooq questioned the basis for seeking treatment at private hospitals and asked why the prisoners could not receive medical care at the government-run Polyclinic or Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).
Justice Ali Baqar Najafi questioned the implementation of the jail manual, observing that the rules governing prisoners’ treatment should be followed.
“If the jail manual is not to be followed, then what is the benefit of the jail manual?” he remarked.
The court observed that the petitions involved interpretation of the law and adjourned further proceedings until Tuesday.
Prisoners seek treatment, communication facilities
The three inmates — Muhammad Ilyas Khan, Mohammad Ismail Hussain and Owais Altaf — approached the FCC after the IHC dismissed their petitions, seeking reversal of the decision and equal access to medical and communication facilities.
In their constitutional petitions, they invoked Article 25 of the Constitution, arguing that all citizens are equal before the law. They contended that denying them facilities available to Imran Khan amounted to discriminatory treatment.
The petitioners also referred to an August 18 order of the Supreme Court and requested permission to be transferred to Shifa International Hospital for medical treatment.
They further sought permission to communicate through WhatsApp with people living abroad, citing similar communication facilities allegedly available to Imran Khan.
The Supreme Court had ordered on August 18 that Imran Khan be transferred from Adiala Jail to Shifa International Hospital for medical treatment.
However, citing security concerns, authorities moved the former prime minister to the government-run PIMS under tight security shortly before the expiry of the 48-hour deadline set by the Supreme Court.
Imran Khan, 73, has been incarcerated in Rawalpindi since August 2023 after being convicted in a number of cases. He and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party have maintained that the cases against him are politically motivated following his removal from office in 2022.
