- A PIMS medical board finalised Khan’s medical fitness report.
- PIMS specialists conducted former premier’s other medical exams.
- Opinion from eye exam was considered alongside results of other tests.
ISLAMABAD: Two specialists from Shifa International Hospital took part in the eye examination of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan at PIMS, the hospital administration said on Saturday, adding that it would not disclose the confidential contents of his medical report.
According to a statement issued by the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad, Khan was brought to the hospital during the night between August 20 and 21 for a medical examination and treatment.
The statement said two specialists from Shifa participated in the former premier’s eye examination, while relevant PIMS specialists conducted his other medical examinations.
The medical opinion obtained from the eye examination was considered alongside the results of other medical investigations, the statement said.
A medical board comprising PIMS doctors subsequently finalised Khan’s medical fitness report, it added.
PIMS said it would not disclose the confidential contents of the medical report, citing patient confidentiality and the Supreme Court’s directives.
Three days ago, the Supreme Court had ordered that Khan be shifted to Shifa for a medical check-up and undergo a comprehensive examination.
However, the government took Khan to PIMS last night, where doctors examined him before he was taken back to Adiala jail late at night.
Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar later said in a social media post that Khan was completely healthy.
“A team of qualified doctors, including an ophthalmologist, a cardiologist and a physician, conducted a detailed examination of him and declared him medically fit,” Tarar said on Friday morning.
In its order on Tuesday, the Supreme Court told authorities to transfer Khan to the Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad within two days and allow him access to a medical panel that includes his personal physician.
Khan was transferred back to Adiala jail in the garrison city of Rawalpindi at 5am (0000 GMT), Tarar said.
PTI terms it contempt of court
The PTI leadership said it would file a contempt petition against what it termed a blatant violation of the Supreme Court order from earlier this week that, according to the party’s interpretation, meant Khan should remain under medical supervision until at least mid-September.
Khan said he was being tortured “repeatedly” in prison, his sister, Uzma Khan, who was present during his medical examination early on Friday, told reporters at a conference.
There was no immediate response from spokespersons for the interior and law ministries as well as from jail authorities to a request for comment from Reuters on Khan’s allegations of torture.
Khan was examined at PIMS rather than Shifa due to a “security situation created by PTI workers” along the planned route, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on X.
The change in venue and the fact that Khan was not given access to his personal physician as mandated by the court both counted as violations of the court’s order, his party said.
“This is contempt of the judges. This is contempt of the Supreme Court,” Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which is ruled by the PTI, told reporters at the conference, a few hours after Khan had returned to jail.
Khan, who has been in prison since August 2023, had a patch on one eye but seemed stable and fit, his sister said.
The cricketer-turned-politician’s supporters lined the streets of the capital Islamabad overnight, showering flowers on the vehicle widely believed to be carrying him to the hospital.
Aired live on Pakistani television, the images stood in stark contrast to how the country’s broadcasters had covered Khan in recent years, tending not to even cite the ousted leader’s name until Thursday night.
“After what happened yesterday, the pressure (on authorities) will double,” Afridi said, adding that preparations for a protest march planned on September 27 had picked up.
Three years in prison
Senior PTI members had expected Khan to remain hospitalised for at least several weeks after he was allowed to leave prison to have his health checked for the first time since February.
But Pakistan’s Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry told a private news channel on Thursday that “if doctors decide that his treatment at the hospital is necessary, he will be admitted. If they opine that he can be treated in jail, he will be sent back.”
Khan has been imprisoned there since 2023. He says the cases against him are politically motivated, an accusation the government denies.
His lawyers say his health has deteriorated in prison and that he has lost significant vision in his right eye. The government has said medical reports have disclosed no condition requiring immediate treatment.
— With additional details from Reuters
