On Saturday, the government blamed PTI for what it called a violation of a Supreme Court order. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar leveled the charge during a press briefing. He said the opposition party crossed the line when it issued statements and spoke to the media after Imran Khan’s medical checkup at PIMS on Friday.
“PML-N is of the view that health issues should not be politicized,” Tarar said.
Key Highlights
- PTI, Imran Khan’s family accused of contempt of court by Tarar
- The government said it had fulfilled all the requirements of the SC’s order for a medical check-up.
- Dr. Uzma Khan has approached the SC for contempt proceedings against the government
- Eight Pakistan Bar Council members denounce government over handling of order
- Government on Thursday filed fresh review petition against SC’s August 18 ruling
Tarar Says Government Operated Within Law All Along
The stance of the PML-N has always been the same, whether in government or in opposition, that politics and health issues should not be mixed, said Tarar. He accused Imran of doing exactly that in the past, saying that when he was prime minister, Imran had released statements and videos about the health of jailed PML-N leaders. “On the other hand, my government has not ridiculed Imran and made controversial remarks since the SC order on his health,” Tarar said.
He went over the sequence of recent events. Following the order of the Supreme Court, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar elaborated on the government’s position. The basic stance was that everything would be according to law, said Attaullah Tarar. The government’s review petition respectfully raised two questions, he said: whether such a medical facility was available to every prisoner and whether the law and Constitution actually allowed a check-up at a private hospital.
سپریم کورٹ کے حکم پر مکمل عملدرآمد کیا گیا، عمران خان کا طبی معائنہ شفاف طریقے سے ہوا۔
اُن کی ہمشیرہ بھی موجود تھیں جبکہ شفا ہسپتال کے ڈاکٹرز نے بھی معائنے میں شرکت کی۔ انتظامیہ کے مطابق تمام کارروائی آئین، قانون اور سپریم کورٹ کے حکم کے تحت کی گئی۔
وفاقی وزیرِ اطلاعات عطاء… pic.twitter.com/Jxcz4lLP9Y
— The Thursday Times (@thursday_times) August 22, 2026
Government says it has met all requirements
Tarar also spoke about implementing the court’s order. He answered his own question outright. The physical took place. And it was see-through. Imran’s sister was at home. Doctors of Shifa Hospital were there as well. “Every obligation under the order was fulfilled,” Tarar said.
He also described how updates were communicated to the public. The law minister elaborated on the reasons behind it shortly after the government submitted its review petition. “I posted an update on X once Imran’s checkup at PIMS was over,” Tarar told The News. He said he was surprised by PTI’s moves thereafter. “PTI is miles away from the light of knowledge,” he said and added that the party would not have filed a contempt petition if it had understood the full situation. He said the contempt petition was frivolous and the government had promptly conveyed facts to the public and was transparent throughout.
Tarar Throws Back PTI’s Accusation of Contempt
“Real contempt was on the other side,” said Tarar. He said the Supreme Court specifically said that no political motives should be attached to the medical check-up. But people gathered around Shifa Hospital, made social media content and removed security barriers, he said. “Was it not PTI that did this,” he asked point blank. Weren’t they the ones who broke the court order?
He called PTI press conferences and public statements as further evidence. “If someone is in contempt, it is Imran Khan’s sister and his party who are in contempt,” Tarar said. Imran’s family and party have gathered people and delivered public statements creating problems for authorities,” he said. “That was the first time a political party was making trouble over the health and treatment of its own founder,” he said.
Tarar also referred to recent statements of the Pakistan Bar Council and the Punjab Bar Council. Both bodies clarified that some of their members spoke in a personal capacity to politicize the issue and the bar councils themselves should be kept separate from the matter, he said. Some lawyers have tried to pollute the bar politics’, he said.
Bar Council Members Push Back, Say Order Violated
Not everyone bought the government’s story. Eight members of the Pakistan Bar Council on Saturday issued a statement condemning the blatant, wilful and deliberate violation of the Supreme Court’s August 18 order. “The court’s direction was clear, unequivocal and binding, their statement said, but the executive chose to ignore it and acted in direct defiance of the court’s instructions. Pir Muhammad Masood Chistie, vice chairman of the PBC, said the statement was the personal opinion of the members and not the collective position of the council.
“The PTI leadership had blocked Imran’s way to treatment and created a security situation around the hospital,” Tarar said, addressing PTI leadership directly. “ PTI was politicizing which disease when he mentioned the medical report from PIMS that declared Imran to be in good health. He said Imran’s treatment has never stopped and will continue as required. He urged PTI leadership and Imran’s family not to mix politics with the legal and health issues involved, saying their public statements on the issue itself were contemptuous.
Events Leading to The Press Conference
Tarar’s comments came hours after Imran’s sister, Dr. Uzma Khan, filed a petition in the Supreme Court to initiate contempt proceedings against violators of the court’s August 18 order. The order directed the government to shift Imran to Shifa International Hospital within two days for examination by a multidisciplinary medical board. The exam also required the presence of Uzma Khan and Imran’s personal doctor, Dr Faisal Sultan. The order also barred Imran’s family, PTI members and his lawyers from revealing any details of his health to the media or the public until the next hearing.
“This is a complete violation of the Supreme Court’s orders. There was no thorough check-up.”
Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan’s family accuses gov’t of defying hospital order https://t.co/PfeOIj7t9S pic.twitter.com/mvjhzn1LFM
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) August 21, 2026
The government filed a review petition the next day, saying the order was discriminatory and against prison rules and principles of natural justice. On Thursday, the Supreme Court returned the petition, citing issues with the affidavit and the improperly prepared paper book. On the same night, elaborate security arrangements were made around Shifa International Hospital, indicating that Imran would be taken there as ordered. But by Friday morning it was evident that he had been taken to PIMS for a medical check-up and brought back to jail. Also on Thursday, the government filed a new review petition with the Islamabad chief commissioner, saying the August 18 order directly impinged upon the constitutional authority of the office.
