The Attorney General maintains that the jail superintendent has the authority to decide what facilities a prisoner will and will not be given.
Bushra Bibi addresses PTI supporters along with KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur and opposition leader Omar Ayub. PHOTO: ONLINE
ISLAMABAD:
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday reserved its verdict on a petition seeking family reunions with former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, access to her personal doctor and supply of essential items.
The case, heard by Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, concerned a petition filed by Bushra Bibi’s daughter Mubashra Maneka. The petition asked for permission for regular family gatherings, access to a private doctor and provision of essential items.
During the hearing, lawyer Salman Akram Raja argued that meetings with Bushra Bibi had been severely restricted despite her medical condition.
“The meetings were organized on April 17; that was the day their operation was being carried out,” Raja told the court. “It was an emergency meeting that lasted only a few minutes.”
He said the last regular weekly meeting took place on February 24, after which no routine meetings were allowed for seven weeks, and only emergency meetings were allowed.
Questioning the restrictions, Raja asked: “What violation of Rule 265 has Bushra Bibi committed?”
He maintained that the restrictions were unjustified and added that it was an admitted fact that Bushra Bibi was unwell and had undergone surgery.
Read: Jail rejects daughter’s request to meet Bushra
He added: “Their whole case is that there are some tweets from Maryam Wattoo due to no gatherings being allowed. When they feel like it, they stop the gatherings,” he said.
Referring to the material presented before the court, he stated: “Maryam Riaz Wattoo’s Twitter account was mentioned in court. They presented tweets of Maryam Riaz Wattoo, but that woman is not even in Pakistan.”
“If there is no connection, then there is no need to read his tweets,” Justice Tahir observed.
The court had earlier ordered Adiala Jail Superintendent Sajid Baig on May 4 to decide within two days on an application filed by Bushra Bibi’s daughter regarding medical access and family visits, and to appear in person on May 6.
Baig, in a written report submitted to the IHC on Wednesday, opposed the request, stating that the family gatherings were followed by public political statements and social media activity, which the administration said affected prison discipline and security.
The report filed by prison authorities specifically referred to social media posts attributed to Bushra Bibi’s sister, Maryam Riaz Wattoo, stating that tweets were shared after family gatherings with the former first lady.
The lawyer further said that the matter had been pending for years and that the defense lawyer had repeatedly gone to court for three years.
“We are told that it is the order of the ‘king’ that meetings cannot be held,” he added. “I don’t know if this is wisdom from the jail superintendent or if they are acting under some order,” he said.
“When they feel like it, they keep her in solitary confinement for two or three months,” he added.
With his arguments concluded, Advocate General Islamabad Naveed Hayat Malik presented the government’s stand, arguing that prison authorities have discretionary powers over the facilities of inmates and that the jail superintendent has discretionary authority to decide which facilities can be given to a prisoner and which cannot.
Read more: IHC summons Adiala jail superintendent in Bushra Bibi case, seeks medical and visitation reports
He raised objections to the maintainability of the petition, saying that it was “not maintainable” as the petitioner had an alternative forum available, namely, the Inspector General of Prisons against the order of the jail superintendent.
He also said that inmates must maintain good behavior and that disciplinary action can be taken in case of violations.
“We are subject to the law; there is no king here, everything is done according to the law,” adding that no meeting can take place without the permission of the prison superintendent.
Malik also claimed that there was already an affidavit filed by lawyer Salman Akram Raja, in which he stated that he would not speak to the media after the meetings in the jail.
Raja denied this and said no such affidavit had been filed. He clarified that his position was limited to not speaking outside the prison door after the meetings. He further told the court that he had been advised to speak elsewhere and added: “You yourself told me that I could speak in the chamber or somewhere else,” he said while addressing Judge Arbab Muhammad Tahir.
Malik insisted there was a recorded engagement; However, Judge Tahir responded by noting his familiarity with the order and saying, “I wrote this decision myself, I know that.”
After arguments from both parties, the court reserved its verdict.
Imran and Bushra Bibi remain imprisoned in Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. They were sentenced on December 20, 2025 to 17 years in prison in the Toshakhana-II case, which concerns allegations that the couple illegally withheld a set of Bulgari jewelry gifted by the Saudi crown prince during an official visit to Saudi Arabia.
Bushra Bibi was shifted back to Adiala Jail on April 17 after crucial eye surgery in Rawalpindi, as concerns over her health continue to reverberate in political circles. According to jail officials, ophthalmologists diagnosed retinal detachment, a condition that requires immediate intervention.
On the afternoon of April 30, she was transferred to a private hospital, where preoperative tests were performed and she subsequently accepted surgery. The procedure was carried out by Professor Dr Nadeem Qureshi along with a medical panel, following which she was discharged after spending the night and returned to custody.
Concerns about her condition had already increased after a document dated March 28 appeared online, stating that a doctor from the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences had examined her and noted a “history of blurred vision and a black spot in her right eye for the past 11 days.”
