The dispute over Imran Khan’s hospitalisation has highlighted a jurisdictional disagreement between the Supreme Court (SC) and the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), raising questions about the division of powers between the two judicial forums following the 27th Constitutional Amendment.
The matter reached the FCC after the government did not implement an earlier court order concerning the former prime minister’s hospital transfer. It was subsequently raised in a separate case filed by three other inmates of Adiala Jail seeking similar relief. The FCC later took up Imran Khan’s hospitalisation case as well.
The development has raised questions about the FCC’s jurisdiction in relation to the Supreme Court. In a ruling issued in May, Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi had described the SC and FCC as “coordinate courts exercising clearly demarcated jurisdictions over distinct matters”.
The current dispute, however, has brought renewed attention to the boundaries between the two courts, particularly following the 27th Amendment, which significantly altered the constitutional judicial framework by establishing the FCC.
The amendment placed major constitutional questions and matters concerning fundamental rights within the FCC’s jurisdiction. The constitutional court recently invoked its jurisdiction to summon complete records of cases pending before the SC concerning Imran Khan’s proposed transfer to hospital. The move indicated that the FCC was examining whether prisoners have a constitutional right to receive such medical treatment.
The FCC subsequently went further by fixing the hospitalisation case for hearing before itself.
The Supreme Court has so far responded cautiously. A three-member bench hearing the matter observed that the FCC’s order raised “considerable legal and constitutional significance” and adjourned proceedings for three weeks. The bench also sought the attorney general’s opinion on whether the FCC’s order was binding on the Supreme Court.
The proceedings have effectively shifted attention away from the immediate question of Imran Khan’s hospitalisation and towards the broader issue of jurisdiction between the two courts.
The dispute has also raised questions about the drafting and implementation of the 27th Amendment. Its provisions do not appear to clearly address how constitutional questions arising during ongoing proceedings before the Supreme Court should be handled, particularly in cases involving laws such as the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Contempt of Court Ordinance.
The controversy has emerged over what initially appeared to be a straightforward judicial matter concerning the transfer of an ailing prisoner to a hospital for medical treatment. It has now developed into a broader constitutional and jurisdictional dispute involving the country’s highest judicial forums.
