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Cricket Greats Urge Pakistan PM to Comply with Court Orders on Imran Khan's Treatment
🇵🇰 Pakistan /Crime & Justice

Cricket Greats Urge Pakistan PM to Comply with Court Orders on Imran Khan's Treatment

From Dawn · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • Twenty-two international cricketers have appealed to Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to ensure former premier Imran Khan receives medical treatment as directed by the Supreme Court.
  • The Supreme Court ordered Khan's transfer to a private hospital for a medical board assessment, but he was instead taken to a government hospital and reportedly lacked necessary facilities for a recommended scan.
  • The cricketers urged the government to allow an independent medical assessment, reinstate family visits, and provide prompt treatment based on the findings.

A group of 22 prominent international cricketers, including 21 former captains, has formally appealed to Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif regarding the medical treatment of former Prime Minister Imran Khan. The cricketers are urging the government to comply with directives issued by the Supreme Court of Pakistan concerning Khan's health.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered that Imran Khan be transferred to hospital for examination by a medical board that was to include his own personal physicians and his sister, Dr Uzma Khan. The court also reinstated weekly family visits. These were very welcome steps.

— Letter from 22 ex-cricketersThe cricketers reference the Supreme Court's directives regarding Imran Khan's treatment and family visits.

According to ESPN Cricinfo, the Supreme Court had ordered on August 18 that Imran Khan be transferred to Shifa International Hospital, a private facility in Islamabad, within two days for examination and treatment by a multidisciplinary medical board. However, reports indicate that Khan was instead taken to the government-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims). Furthermore, it was reported that he could not undergo a recommended computed tomography angiography (CTA) at Pims due to the unavailability of the required equipment.

He was examined by a state-appointed team rather than the board the court had directed, declared ‘medically fit’, and returned to Adiala Jail before that board could complete its work.

— Letter from 22 ex-cricketersThe cricketers express concern that the court's orders were not fully followed regarding Khan's medical assessment.

The letter penned by the former cricketers highlighted that the Supreme Court had mandated the inclusion of Khan's personal physicians and his sister, Dr. Uzma Khan, in the medical board. The court had also reinstated weekly family visits, which were welcomed. However, the cricketers noted that Khan's hospital stay was brief. "He was examined by a state-appointed team rather than the board the court had directed, declared 'medically fit', and returned to Adiala Jail before that board could complete its work," the letter stated.

Permitting the medical board directed by the Supreme Court, including Imran’s own doctors, to complete a full and independent assessment of his health, particularly the reported loss of vision in his right eye.

— Letter from 22 ex-cricketersOne of the key demands made by the cricketers in their appeal to the Prime Minister.

The signatories, which include cricketing legends such as Sunil Gavaskar, Allan Border, and Michael Atherton, appealed for several key actions: allowing the Supreme Court-directed medical board to conduct a full and independent health assessment, particularly concerning Khan's reported vision loss in his right eye; ensuring uninterrupted weekly family visits as reinstated by the court; and providing necessary treatment without delay following the medical assessment. The cricketers emphasized they were writing "not as politicians, but as former colleagues and rivals who share a bond forged on the cricket field," and stated they did not intend to interfere in Pakistan's domestic legal processes. This appeal follows a similar expression of "deep concern" from several of these cricketers in February regarding Khan's treatment and prison conditions.

Honouring the weekly family visits reinstated by the court without interruption or administrative delay

— Letter from 22 ex-cricketersAnother specific request made by the cricketers to ensure Khan's family can visit him.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dawn in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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