He states that he will decide whether the pleas are admissible only after receiving the reports
ISLAMABAD:
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has asked the superintendent of Rawalpindi’s Adiala Prison for a detailed report and detention record in a case relating to allegations that former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were kept in solitary confinement.
Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro issued the order on Saturday while hearing petitions related to the alleged isolation of the PTI founder and his wife.
The court ordered the superintendent of Adiala Prison to submit a comprehensive report explaining whether Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi were kept in solitary confinement.
If so, the report must specify why they were placed in solitary confinement, under what law, for how long and whether the detention amounts to any form of punishment. The IHC observed that it would decide whether the petitions were admissible only after receiving the reports.
The court also ordered the jail authorities to provide details of the conditions in which Imran and Bushra are kept, as well as the facilities provided to them inside the jail.
She asked the director to explain how accurate the allegations of solitary confinement were and to provide full details.
The court also ordered the prison authorities to explain under what legal provision the prisoners would have been kept in solitary confinement, for how long and under what circumstances.
The court also asked the Inspector General of Prisons to ensure the appearance of a prison superintendent at the next hearing, along with prison files, prison registers and all related documents relating to the two prisoners.
He said the officer appearing before the court must be fully aware of the facts and circumstances of the case. The IHC adjourned the hearing until August 6.
Last week, Aleema Khanum, a sister of Imran Khan, filed a petition with the IHC seeking a declaration that the prolonged isolation and incommunicado detention of her brother at Adiala Prison is illegal, unconstitutional and without legal authority.
The petition, filed under Article 199 of the Constitution through a legal team led by advocate Salman Safdar and advocate Salman Akram Raja, named the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent of Adiala Prison, Inspector General of Prisons Punjab, Chairman NAB, Director General FIA, Medical Superintendent PIMS and the State as respondents.
According to the petition, Imran is serving sentences in two cases – the Al-Qadir Trust case and the Toshakhana Bvlgari case – and his appeals against both convictions, as well as requests for sentence suspension, are currently pending before the IHC.
She said that since his conviction in the Bvlgari Set case, her brother had been subjected to “unprecedented, harsh and rigorous solitary confinement.”
According to the petition, Imran is kept in solitary confinement for around 22 hours a day, while his wife, Bushra Bibi, is held in solitary confinement 24 hours a day.
The petition particularly drew attention to Imran Khan’s deteriorating eyesight. He said he lost about 85 percent of the vision in his right eye and was taken out of Adiala Prison on at least four occasions for PIMS injections.
