ISLAMABAD: A high-stakes, late-night high-drama unfolded between Rawalpindi and the federal capital in the early hours of Friday, as an operation to transfer incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan from Adiala Jail for medical examination resulted in intense confusion, conflicting reports, and claims of decoy convoys.
عمران خان ہسپتال سے واپس اڈیالہ منتقل
راولپنڈی/ اڈیالہ جیل
بانی پی ٹی آئی کو ہسپتال شفٹ کرنے کا معاملہ۔
بانی کو واپس اڈیالہ جیل منتقل کردیا گیا
بانی کو ہسپتال سے اڈیالہ جیل انتہائی سخت سیکورٹی میں لایا گیا، جیل ذرائع
بانی پی ٹی آئی کو ان کے سیک میں شفٹ کردیا گیا، جیل ذرائع— imran waseem (@imranwaseem92) August 21, 2026
While mainstream reports initially pointed to the compliance of a Supreme Court directive to shift the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder to Shifa International Hospital, accounts emerging from PTI sources and legal representatives alleged that Mr Khan was taken to the government-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) before being abruptly returned to prison without undergoing the required medical evaluations.
Decoy Convoys and Conflicting Accounts
The late-night movement commenced under extraordinary security, with heavily guarded convoys departing Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi after midnight.
ڈاکٹر فیصل سلطان کو ایک کانوائے کے ساتھ شفا انٹرنیشنل بھیج دیا گیا تھا جبکہ دوسرے کانوائے کو پمز لے گئے ، جس میں عمران خان صاحب اور ڈاکٹر عظمی صاحبہ تھیں
— Husnain Rafique (@Husnainrafique_) August 21, 2026
Heavy police contingents and paramilitary Rangers were deployed along the routes linking the twin cities, with road blockades and security cordons erected around both Shifa International Hospital and PIMS.
However, the transfer quickly degenerated into a scene of political and logistical theater.
According to details circulating through PTI-linked channels and observers monitoring the developments, authorities allegedly utilized a split-convoy strategy.
One security convoy carried Mr Khan’s personal physician, Dr. Faisal Sultan, toward Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad, while a separate convoy transporting the PTI chief accompanied by his sister, Dr. Uzma Khan, was redirected toward PIMS.
Upon arrival at PIMS, sources familiar with the account claimed that the intended medical diagnostic tests were not conducted.
According to PTI representatives, Mr Khan did not refuse medical examination; rather, the administrative handlers overseeing the transfer aborted the procedures, placing the former premier back into a vehicle and returning him directly to Adiala Jail before daybreak.
Contempt Allegations and Apex Court Mandate
The late-night developments mark the latest escalation in a bitter legal tug-of-war over the 73-year-old former prime minister’s health.
On August 18, a three-member Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed had issued an interim order directing prison authorities to move Mr Khan to Shifa International Hospital within 48 hours for treatment by a multidisciplinary medical board.
The top court’s order explicitly mandated that his personal physician, Dr. Faisal Sultan, and his sister, Dr. Uzma Khan, be associated with the board. The court also restored weekly family access and ordered the preservation of medical confidentiality while barring political point-scoring.
The executive branch had resisted the directive, with the federal government filing a review petition through the Islamabad Chief Commissioner.
The state argued that shifting a convicted prisoner to a private facility of his choosing was “discriminatory” and violated Pakistan Prison Rules. However, the Supreme Court registrar’s office returned the review petition due to technical objections regarding incomplete paper books.
PTI leaders and legal advisers have characterized the late-night maneuver as a deliberate attempt to circumvent the apex court’s binding judgment.
As of early Friday morning, the situation remains fluid and highly contested. While the federal government has yet to issue a detailed formal statement regarding the specific events of the night, PTI’s legal team is expected to approach the Supreme Court to report non-compliance with its August 18 order.
