PNN: On Tuesday, the Supreme Court appointed Advocate Salman Safdar as friend of the court to report on the living conditions of PTI founder Imran Khan at Adiala Jail.
At the outset of the hearing, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi said Safdar should be treated with respect and not be made to wait outside the jail. “It is expected that our friend of the court will be given access to the PTI founder at Adiala Jail with due respect,” the chief justice said.
He added that if the friend of the court faced any difficulty, his personal staff officer would be available to assist.
The bench, comprising CJP Afridi and Justice Shahid Bilal Hasan, directed Salman Safdar to visit Adiala Jail and submit a written report on the PTI founder’s living conditions and available facilities. The court also ordered that Safdar be given access to the PTI founder’s jail barrack so he could prepare the report.
The court directed the friend of the court to submit the report by Wednesday and adjourned the hearing until the day after tomorrow.
During the proceedings, Salman Safdar asked whether the scope of his report was limited only to living conditions. He told the court that “after a physical eye examination, there are some concerns regarding the PTI founder’s health”.
In response, the chief justice directed that the living conditions report be submitted in chambers.
Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan told the court that, in compliance with the August 24, 2023, order, a written response had already been submitted in chambers. He said that at the time the order was passed, the PTI founder was lodged in Attock Jail.
“We submitted the written report in chambers on August 28, 2023,” the attorney general said, adding that medical reports from August 5 to August 18 were also attached.
However, the chief justice observed that after the August 24, 2023, order, “there is no order on record on which this court has expressed satisfaction”.
The court said it had full confidence in Salman Safdar and found it appropriate to seek a fresh report on the PTI founder’s living conditions, as he is now detained at a different jail.
Earlier during the hearing, the chief justice stopped senior lawyer Latif Khosa from addressing the court. At the end of the proceedings, Khosa again approached the rostrum and requested permission to meet his client.
The Supreme Court rejected Khosa’s request and ordered that Salman Safdar be allowed to visit Adiala Jail the same day.
A day earlier, the Supreme Court had rejected an urgent request by Imran Khan’s counsel to allow an immediate meeting with the jailed former prime minister, while referring multiple appeals related to the PTI founder to different benches.
The same division bench had taken up 13 cases, including appeals by the Punjab government against Imran Khan’s bail and an appeal against the grant of bail to his wife, Bushra Bibi.
During that hearing, the court declined the request for an immediate meeting but issued a notice to the government on Khosa’s application seeking permission to meet his client.
CJP Afridi had observed that no order could be passed without issuing notice to the other party and said the court would first decide objections related to the maintainability of the petition. He noted that several related matters were pending before other courts and remarked that the case appeared to have become infructuous, as it stemmed from the August 24, 2023 order.
“We will first determine whether the case is infructuous or still maintainable,” the chief justice had said.
Meanwhile, the court also directed the formation of a three-member bench to hear appeals against the acquittal of Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case.
Safdar meets Imran today
In Rawalpindi, Barrister Salman Safdar, appointed as friend of the court by the Supreme Court, will meet the PTI founder in jail today, officials said.
According to jail sources, the Central Jail Adiala administration has finalised arrangements for the meeting.
The friend of the court is scheduled to meet the PTI founder at around 2:00pm today, jail sources said, adding that the jail administration has formally informed Barrister Safdar. Jail sources said it has not yet been decided whether Salman Safdar will be allowed to visit the PTI founder’s jail compound.
The jail administration has also informed the staff assigned to monitor the PTI founder, according to sources. Doctors and medical staff who conduct three daily medical check-ups of the PTI founder have also been informed, the sources said.
The nutritionist responsible for monitoring the PTI founder’s meals has likewise been informed, they added. Jail sources said staff responsible for maintaining the PTI founder’s medical record have also been notified.