ISLAMABAD: The PTI on Wednesday moved two applications before the Supreme Court, seeking early fixing of cases relating to the concealment of assets and the immediate shifting of PTI founder Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, for proper eye treatment by a retina specialist.

Moved through senior counsel Sardar Latif Khosa, who represents Mr Khan before the SC in the concealment of assets case, the first application sought access for Mr Khan’s personal physicians, Dr Faisal Sultan and Dr Aasim Yusuf, and requested that they be allowed to remain associated with the examination and treatment procedures.

Filed under Order 35 Rule 6 of the SC Rules, 2025, the applications were submitted a day after the PTI founder was taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) for follow-up treatment of his eye ailment.

The PTI took exception to what it described as secrecy surrounding the medical procedure and the complete exclusion of family members during the administration of a second dose of anti-VEGF intravitreal injection.

The application prayed that the petitioner’s family members be duly informed and granted reasonable access during his medical check-ups and treatment.

Seeks ex-PM’s attested medical reports, his transfer to Shifa hospital

It also requested the SC to order the provision of attested copies of medical reports and check-ups already carried out, to his lawyer. It also urged the SC that the lawyer be granted reasonable access to Mr Khan for updated instructions to ensure effective representation before the court and to enable complete justice to the petitioner.

In the second application, Mr Khosa pleaded that the asset concealment case pending adjudication before the SC be heard at the earliest, otherwise irreparable loss would be caused to Mr Khan.

“No prejudice shall be caused to the respondents (District Election Commissioner, Islamabad) if the case is fixed for early hearing, whereas grave injustice may result if the matter is delayed,” he stated.

At the last hearing on Feb 18, a three-judge SC bench headed by Justice Hashim Kakar had issued notice to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) regarding the disqualification of Mr Khan from participating in general elections for a period of five years, but no date was fixed for the next hearing.

Later, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, while talking to the media outside the SC, said PTI parliamentarians would go to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday, where they had already requested early hearings on 17 occasions over the past year in cases concerning the party founder.

Barrister Gohar recalled that appeals against convictions awarded on Jan 17, 2025, in the Al-Qadir Trust and Toshakhana-II cases were pending before the IHC, despite judicial policy on the criminal justice system stipulating that such cases should be decided within 35 to 60 days.

However, he said, more than a year had passed and the cases had yet to be fixed for hearing. Similarly, he added, cases concerning Bushra Bibi, the wife of Mr Khan, had also not been fixed.

He stated the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister had earlier approached the rostrum in the court of the IHC chief justice to request early fixation of the cases, but no positive response was received.

In his application, Mr Khosa highlighted that Mr Khan, aged 73, was suffering from declining health, which was a matter of grave concern not only for his family but for the people of Pakistan at large.

Being one of the most widely supported political leaders in the country, public interest in his well-being was natural and unavoidable, the application stated. Despite this, he remained deprived of basic human necessities at a time when his medical condition demanded care and transparency, the court was apprised.

Over the past few months, reports have surfaced nationwide raising serious concerns about the deterioration of Mr Khan’s eyesight and overall health. These reports, coupled with the continued denial of access to family members, have created deep uncertainty, the application said.

It rejected claims circulating in certain quarters that family and party members had been informed of the medical check-up but voluntarily chose not to attend, terming such assertions wholly incorrect and unrealistic.

“At no stage were Imran Khan’s family members, personal physicians or counsel informed,” the application asserted, adding that they were instead denied access.

The application regretted that a handpicked team of doctors was allowed to conduct the examination, while his personal doctors, family members and legal team were excluded.

It recalled that Mr Khan, through his counsel, had written to Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi on Feb 16, seeking appropriate orders for compliance with his medical examination and for his transfer to Shifa hospital as no retina specialist is available at Pims.

However, the insistence on his treatment at Pims, where no retina specialist exists, and the continued exclusion of family members and personal medical practitioners created unavoidable doubts, it stated.

Such secrecy, it warned, not only undermines confidence in the medical process but is also causing unrest and distress among his family, friends and supporters.

Published in Dawn, February 26th, 2026