LAHORE: Jailed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders have written to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Yahya Afridi, raising serious concerns over alleged obstruction to medical and legal access for the party’s founder, Imran Khan, and urging him to intervene to ensure justice in his treatment.
In a letter issued through their lawyer, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Ijaz Chaudhry, Omar Sarfraz Cheema and Mahmood-ur-Rashid maintained that the former prime minister has been repeatedly denied access to his personal doctor, family members and legal counsel during treatment.
The development came a day after Imran Khan received a second eye injection at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad.
The former prime minister, who has been incarcerated since August 2023, has been diagnosed with a serious eye condition known as central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO). A report submitted to the Supreme Court earlier this month stated that he has lost approximately 85 per cent of the vision in his right eye.
In the letter, the PTI leaders drew a comparison with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s medical treatment in 2019. They stated that when Nawaz Sharif was shifted to Services Hospital in Lahore due to low platelet counts, the government ensured he received proper medical care.
They added that Nawaz’s personal physician, Dr Adnan, attended all meetings of the medical board, and that his family and legal counsel had full access to him.
They further said that Nawaz was permitted to travel to England for treatment of his heart ailment, where he had previously received medical care.
The PTI leaders alleged that the sitting government had engaged in “cloak-and-dagger” conduct, initially denying that Imran Khan was unwell and later issuing statements after reports emerged about his CRVO diagnosis.
The letter said his treatment rights were ignored, his consultants’ access was restricted, and that his family and personal lawyer were not allowed to meet him. It added that the PTI founder’s family was informed of his second eye injection only after the procedure had been carried out, at around 2am.
The PTI leaders also alleged that the government was deliberately creating obstacles in order to retain political control, accusing it of lacking public mandate and seeking to avoid political instability.
They appealed to the chief justice to take notice of the matter and ensure that Imran Khan is granted proper access to his personal doctor, legal counsel and family members, in accordance with the law. –Agencies
