Govt files review plea against SC ruling to move Imran to Shifa International Hospital, terms it 'discriminatory'

The federal government has submitted a petition to the Supreme Court seeking a review and cancellation of the order directing former Prime Minister Imran Khan to be moved to Shifa International Hospital for a medical examination and treatment. The government's review petition, filed by Islamabad Advocate General Naveed Hayat Malik on behalf of the chief commissioner of Islamabad, a day after the Supreme Court's ruling, described the interim order as "discriminatory" and "in excess of jurisdiction".

The petition argued that the court had overlooked Rule 197 of the Pakistan Prison Rules, 1978, which governs the procedure for transferring prisoners to hospitals. According to the rule, government orders for such transfers would be issued through the police inspector general, with the jail superintendent acting on government sanction in emergency cases.

The government's petition further contended that ordering the transfer of a prisoner to a private hospital based on a report that did not reveal any urgent medical condition would "severely disturb the entire criminal justice system".