Pakistan's Supreme Court allows lawyer of Imran Khan's party to meet him in jail

Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed a lawyer of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party to meet incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan in prison and submit a report about his "living conditions".

Khan, 73, has been in jail since August 5, 2023, when he was arrested at his Lahore residence after his conviction in a corruption case. Currently, he has been kept at Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi.

A two-member panel of the apex court, comprising Chief Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan, hearing a petition to meet Khan appointed PTI counsel Salman Safdar as amicus curiae with the orders to visit the jail.

The court stated that it “considered appropriate that a report regarding the present ‘living conditions of the petitioner in jail’ be submitted”.

Subsequently, the court appointed Safdar as amicus curiae.

“Salman Safdar should go to Adiala as a friend of the court,” Afridi said, adding that the court has full faith in him.

Justice Afridi said that Safdar "should be given full access to the PTI founder so he may be able to file a written response.” He also directed the jail authorities that the lawyer should not be kept waiting outside the prison.

Safdar asked the court “if the scope of the report was limited to living conditions only”, while he cited reported concerns about Khan’s health after a recent medical procedure.

But the chief justice clarified and told him to “submit a report of the living conditions only.” Lawyer Latif Khosa, who had filed a petition for a meeting with Khan, asked the court to accept his request. The panel turned down the plea and adjourned the hearing till February 12.

It will be the first meeting with Khan by anyone since December 2, when his sister Uzma Khan was allowed to meet him for 20 minutes. Later, she told the media that Khan was in good health.

Authorities stopped weekly meetings between Khan and his family members and lawyers, as allegedly such meetings were being used for political purposes.