Aleema Khan challenges Imran Khan’s alleged solitary confinement in IHC

ISLAMABAD: Aleema Khan, the sister of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, has filed a writ petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) challenging what she described as his prolonged solitary confinement at Central Jail Adiala in Rawalpindi, calling it unlawful and a breach of fundamental rights.

According to the petition, submitted through Barrister Salman Safdar and Salman Akram Raja, the respondents include the superintendent and deputy superintendent of Adiala jail, the inspector general of prisons Punjab, the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the director general of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the medical superintendent of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), and the state.

Imran Khan has been in prison since Aug 5, 2023, after being convicted in the Toshakhana case involving concealment of details of state gifts. He is currently serving a 14-year sentence at Adiala jail in the £190 million case, also referred to as the Al-Qadir Trust case.

Petition challenges legality of confinement

The petition argues that no court has ordered solitary confinement for the 74-year-old former premier in either the Al-Qadir Trust case or the Toshakhana-II case. It says jail authorities have allegedly kept him in isolation for around 22 hours a day over the past six months without legal basis.

Referring to Section 73 of the Pakistan Penal Code and Rules 639 and 1019 of the Pakistan Prisons Rules, 1978, the petition states that solitary confinement can only be imposed by a court and cannot continue for more than 14 days at a time.

patently illegal, devoid of lawful authority, and amounting to inhuman and degrading treatment

The petition says the confinement violates Articles 9 and 14 of the Constitution, maintaining that such treatment amounts to torture prohibited under the law. It also cites the United Nations Nelson Mandela Rules, which bar indefinite and prolonged solitary confinement as inconsistent with human dignity.

Health concerns raised in plea

The petition further claims that Imran Khan has lost 85 per cent of the vision in his right eye because of an ailment for which he was taken to Pims hospital on four occasions. It says neither his family nor his legal team was informed about the nature of the illness or the treatment being provided.

According to the plea, repeated injections have not improved his eyesight, and he has not been formally admitted to a hospital for proper diagnosis. It also alleges that former Adiala jail superintendent Abdul Ghafoor Anjum was transferred because of deliberate indifference and failure to ensure timely medical treatment.

The petition says Imran Khan told his lawyers during court-mandated meetings that his wife, Bushra Bibi, is also being held in solitary confinement for 24 hours a day at the same prison.

Restrictions on meetings and reading material

The plea also alleges that he is not being provided television, books or other reading material. It further states that lawyers are being stopped from meeting him for legal consultations and for execution of powers of attorney.

In addition, the petition says the PTI chairman, secretary general and other party office-bearers are not being allowed to meet him.

The petition asks the court to declare the PTI founder’s solitary confinement and incommunicado detention illegal, unlawful, without lawful authority and in violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.

Over the past year, PTI leaders and members of Imran Khan’s family have repeatedly said that the former prime minister is being kept in solitary confinement at Adiala jail, while also voicing concern over his health. Earlier this month, his counsel Salman Safdar had also urged the IHC to consider his release on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, citing prolonged solitary confinement and an eye infection.