ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has welcomed the Supreme Court’s order directing authorities to shift former prime minister and PTI founder Imran Khan to a hospital for medical examination and treatment.
“Every sick prisoner has the fundamental right to receive medical treatment. The matter should not have reached the Supreme Court and the government should have taken notice of it itself,” Bilawal said.
He said the PPP’s position was clear that every prisoner who falls ill should be provided proper medical treatment and necessary facilities.
The Supreme Court had directed authorities to shift Imran Khan from Adiala jail to Shifa International Hospital for medical examination and treatment.
Bilawal said he and other members of his party welcomed the court’s decision and reiterated that access to healthcare was a fundamental right of prisoners.
Responding to a question about the creation of new provinces, Bilawal said the will of the people should be given due weightage in such matters.
He said the PPP would not bow to any pressure and would stand by its position on the issue.
Bilawal said the PPP had always respected Parliament and stressed that important parliamentary committees needed to be activated to make the legislature more proactive and functional.
He said opposition parties had boycotted parliamentary committees, affecting their functioning.
Bilawal said he had met opposition leaders Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Allama Nasir Abbas, adding that the PPP had always played a key role in electoral reforms.
He said he wanted Parliament to become more proactive and effective.
Bilawal raises concerns over AJK elections
Talking about the Azad Jammu and Kashmir elections, Bilawal said almost every political party had raised concerns about the fairness of the polls.
He said the PPP was a democratic party and accepted defeat openly.
“We had to collect the bodies of our workers under our own government in AJK, which should not have happened,” he said.
Bilawal expressed surprise that elections in a small region like AJK were conducted in three phases.
He said the PML-N government had no idea about the 26th and 27th constitutional amendments, claiming that the PPP had spearheaded the amendments.
He described the Kashmir elections as a sensitive matter and said the less controversial the polls were, the better.
“Unfortunately, they turned out to be highly controversial,” he said.
Bilawal said the president of the Azad Kashmir People’s Party had been attacked.
“The entire army of federal ministers was sitting here. My people were shot,” he said.
He said the elections were not yet over but had already become controversial.
“If the PML-N wants such a controversial government, then congratulations to them,” Bilawal said.
PPP opposes creation of provinces without consensus
Bilawal said there were areas from which new provinces could potentially be carved out, but stressed that no new province should be created without consensus within the relevant province.
He said Sindh’s position on the creation of new provinces was clear.
“We have never accepted, nor will we accept, such things under pressure or duress. People have sent us to Parliament to defend their rights,” he said.
No focus on in-house change
Bilawal said the PPP was currently not focused on bringing about an in-house change.
He reiterated that his party’s priority was to strengthen Parliament and ensure that parliamentary institutions functioned effectively.
Regarding Imran Khan’s medical treatment, Bilawal again stressed that every prisoner had the right to receive medical care if they fell ill.
He said the issue should have been addressed by the government itself rather than reaching the Supreme Court.
Bilawal added that government ministers had also appreciated the Supreme Court’s decision regarding Imran Khan’s medical treatment.
