• Tarar says health issues should remain separate from politics
• Tallal recalls PTI supporters’ ‘insensitivity’ during Kulsoom Nawaz’s illness
• PTI describes remarks as ‘irresponsible’, accuses ministers of politicising ex-PM’s medical treatment
ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday questioned the Supreme Court’s order to shift incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan to Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad for medical examination and treatment, asking whether all prisoners should be provided with access to private hospitals.
Addressing a news conference in the federal capital, Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the matter of treatment was already clear and that only the private hospital aspect would be challenged in the government’s review petition against the SC order.
Flanked by State Minister for Interior Tallal Chaudhry, the information minister said the PML-N had never politicised health matters, while PTI leaders had a history of making political statements about the health of PML-N leaders.
Mr Tarar maintained that Mr Khan had already been provided with medical facilities in the past and would continue to receive treatment in accordance with prison rules and legal provisions.
“There is no ambiguity regarding his treatment,” the minister said, adding that healthcare facilities were being provided under the jail manual and all applicable rules. He stressed that health issues should remain separate from politics.
Referring to discussions on social and mainstream media that the PTI leader was about to be set free, Mr Tarar, without naming any person or group, said the “impression they wanted to create” would never be fulfilled.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Chaudhry said the government’s position had been clear from day one that every institution should work within its domain.
“Better healthcare facilities are the right of every prisoner,” he said.
Mr Chaudhry recalled that a lack of sensitivity had been shown during the illness of late Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, wife of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, a fact that was widely known.
He alleged that after using all other tactics, Mr Khan was now relying on a “sympathy card”. He questioned why those who made health a political agenda did not make performance their agenda instead.
PTI slams remarks
In response, the PTI criticised the ministers for their press conference on Mr Khan’s health and treatment, describing their remarks as “irresponsible, insensitive and shameful”.
In a statement issued by its central media department, the PTI said turning Mr Khan’s health into a subject of political debate and point-scoring reflected the government’s “insensitivity and lack of seriousness”.
Saying that SC orders were not subject to the government’s wishes, the party urged the government to comply with the order, rather than trying to make the decision controversial through press conferences and political statements.
The PTI said a three-member SC bench, after considering the medical situation, had ordered that Mr Khan be shifted to Shifa International Hospital, a medical board comprising specialists be constituted and his personal doctors be involved in his treatment.
“If the treatment being provided at Adiala jail was so satisfactory, why did the SC consider it necessary to order his transfer to Shifa International Hospital?” the PTI asked.
The party also referred to Mr Sharif’s treatment, saying that when he had sought permission to travel abroad for medical treatment during the PTI government’s tenure, the authorities had acted on humanitarian grounds rather than political considerations.
It said former health minister Dr Yasmin Rashid and other PTI ministers had recognised Mr Sharif’s right to medical treatment and facilitated his departure for treatment abroad.
Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2026
