Imran Khan to get medical attention at the preferred location, says Tariq Fazal Chaudhry

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said on Friday that the government would not allow any negligence in Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan’s eye examination and medical treatment, adding that they would take place wherever orders were given.

PTI’s counsel, Advocate Salman Safdar, submitted a Supreme Court-mandated report on Thursday after meeting the former prime minister in Adiala jail earlier this week. Imran informed Safdar that his right eye was now functioning at only 15% capacity after undergoing a medical procedure at the Paklistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) last month.

As a result, the two-man bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi and Justice Shahid Bilal Hasan ordered that Imran be allowed access to his personal doctors in Adiala jail and allowed telephone contact with his sons. The revelations about Imran’s eye provoked outrage from the ranks of the opposition and other politicians.

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Speaking on the matter today in a speech outside the Parliament building, Chaudhry said: “Imran’s eye will be examined wherever it is ordered. If he tells Al-Shifa Eye Trust, that is where the eye will be examined and if the CJP recommends him another doctor, then they will be contacted. There will be no room for negligence in this matter. We want this whole matter to be made a sensitive issue.”

He said the case should not be politicized and that appropriate medical care was provided in accordance with medical advice.

Chaudhry said Imran had complained of an eye problem earlier and any negligence, if proven, would bear the responsibility.

The minister added that Uzma Khanum had told the media after a meeting with Imran in October that his health was good and again expressed satisfaction over his condition on December 2. He said Imran did not even mention any eye problem until mid-January.

“Politicizing an eye disease is itself a criminal act,” he noted.

The minister said that on January 16, Imran formally complained of eye discomfort after which the jail authorities transferred him to PIMS as per medical requirements so that his eye could be treated in a hospital. He added that an experienced ophthalmologist had prepared a medical report and that the medical assessment would be prepared again.

“CJP Yahya Afridi is taking care of the matter himself,” the minister added.

Chaudhry further said that the matter had also been discussed with the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Mahmood Khan Achakzai.

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Aleema Khanum criticizes the government’s “clear conspiracy”.

Reacting to his press conference, Imran’s sister Aleema Khanum strongly criticized it in a post on X, calling it a “clear conspiracy on the part of the government”.

She added: “We do not want Imran Khan to be treated at Al Shifa Rawalpindi. We have repeatedly and unequivocally stated that Imran Khan should be treated at Shifa International Hospital Islamabad, the facility where the identified specialists are based. The decision has been taken by his personal doctors and any examination or treatment should take place there, under his personal medical team and Dr Khan’s direct supervision.”

“There are serious concerns that he may be forcibly moved in the middle of the night to Al Shifa Eye Hospital, Rawalpindi, without informing his family or his personal doctors. Afterwards, it can be falsely claimed that Imran Khan himself requested to be taken there. The reality is that he may not even be aware of the existence of this hospital. This is not acceptable to those who are not responsible for those who have his eye. It is getting worse.”

She previously questioned why the written order from the Supreme Court had still not been received.

“It is 1pm on Friday and we still have not received the written order from the Supreme Court,” she said. She said formal written directions were needed to ensure Imran was examined by specialists and treated under the supervision of his own doctors at Shifa International Hospital.

CJP Afridi had given a two-day deadline for implementation of the order; However, Aleema said the directive could not be implemented without a written order. “Given the urgency and the risk to his view, why has the CJP delayed issuing the written orders?” she added.

She said the order still hadn’t been delivered from a post on X at 15.40.