Islamabad, Pakistan – The sister of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has instructed Al Jazeera that the household has rejected a authorities board’s claims that the cricketer-turned-politician’s eyesight has improved since a courtroom report final week mentioned he had misplaced most imaginative and prescient in a single eye.
A government-appointed medical board analyzing the jailed ex-leader reported a big enchancment in his eyesight after weeks of controversy over his deteriorating imaginative and prescient. Its medical report, seen by Al Jazeera, claims that Khan’s imaginative and prescient in his proper eye has improved from 6/36 to six/9. His left eye stays at 6/6 imaginative and prescient with the usage of glasses.
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In ophthalmic phrases, 6/6 imaginative and prescient means the individual’s eyesight is ok. A 6/9 studying means the individual can see at 6 metres (20 toes) what somebody with regular imaginative and prescient sees at 9 metres (30 ft).
The evaluation was carried out on Sunday by a two-member board comprising medical doctors Nadeem Qureshi and Muhammad Arif Khan. The specialists carried out an in depth examination at Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, the place the 73-year-old founding father of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) social gathering has been imprisoned since August 2023.
However Khan’s household mentioned it had “no belief” within the authorities.
His sister, Aleema Khan, described it as “extraordinarily regarding and unacceptable” that the federal government had resisted permitting Khan’s private physician and a household consultant to be current through the examination and remedy.
“With out the bodily presence of each his private physician and household consultant, we categorically reject any claims made by the federal government relating to his examination, remedy or medical situation,” Aleema instructed Al Jazeera.
Aasim Yusuf, chief medical officer of the Imran Khan-founded Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital and considered one of Khan’s private physicians, mentioned in a video message that he had held a 40-minute dialog with the 2 medical doctors who examined Khan on February 15.
Within the video, shared by the PTI on social media, Yusuf mentioned the visiting medical doctors briefed him on the remedy and future plan of care, including that based on their newest evaluation, “Khan had proven important enchancment because of remedy and his imaginative and prescient had improved considerably as effectively”.
“I might be extraordinarily comfortable if I used to be capable of affirm that this was the case. Sadly, as a result of I’ve not seen him myself and haven’t been capable of take part in his care or to speak to him, I’m unable to both affirm or deny the veracity of what now we have been instructed,” Yusuf mentioned.
Disputed prognosis
The most recent examination comes after stories final month that authorities had taken Khan late at evening to a authorities facility for a medical process with out informing his household. Following the outcry, Pakistan’s Supreme Courtroom appointed Barrister Salman Safdar as amicus curiae to satisfy Khan and assess his situation.
In a seven-page report filed final week, Safdar painted a troubling image. He wrote that Khan had suffered speedy and substantial imaginative and prescient loss over the previous three months and that regardless of repeated complaints of persistent blurred and hazy imaginative and prescient, “no motion was taken by the jail authorities to deal with these complaints”.
Safdar quoted Khan as saying that “solely 15 p.c” imaginative and prescient remained in his proper eye.
PTI Normal Secretary Salman Akram Raja instructed reporters in Islamabad on Monday that the 2 medical doctors, considered one of whom was advisable after consultations with Yusuf, confirmed that Khan’s imaginative and prescient had improved.
“The 2 medical doctors who met him in jail mentioned that Khan confirmed to them that he was unable to see the clock on the wall for a couple of weeks, [but] can no longer solely see that, but in addition the clock fingers. In keeping with medical doctors, this was an unbelievable enchancment in his imaginative and prescient,” Raja mentioned.
Aleema, nevertheless, insisted that the household couldn’t settle for any medical report till Khan’s doctor examined him in individual. She renewed the demand that he be transferred to Shifa Worldwide Hospital in Islamabad.
She accused the federal government of repeatedly deceptive the household about Khan’s well being.
“After our protest and Salman Safdar’s report, we have been instructed that he can be taken to Shifa Worldwide Hospital, together with [the] presence of his doctor in addition to a member of the family, however then, abruptly, they [the government] modified the plan. How can we be immediately denied?” she requested.
Aleema mentioned authorities had requested the household to offer the names of medical doctors and kinfolk who might accompany Khan, solely to reject every proposal.
“There have been repeated back-and-forth telephone calls. We gave them the names of his private medical doctors, together with Dr Aasim. One other identify we gave was our sister, Uzma Khan, to symbolize the household. However the response from the federal government was that no sister will likely be allowed to satisfy him,” she claimed.
She added that her brother had no underlying medical circumstances, comparable to diabetes or hypertension, and described him as a political prisoner.
“Our hearts are breaking, and we’re so pissed off. That is deliberate. When Salman Safdar went there and got here again, he instructed us the story, and we cried listening to about Khan’s present state of affairs. This isn’t simply felony negligence, that is outright felony and deliberate,” she mentioned.
Standoff over medical entry
The PTI and its allies, who’re holding a sit-in exterior parliament, have promised to proceed their protest till their calls for are met, together with entry to Khan and his switch to Shifa Worldwide Hospital.
Sheikh Waqas Akram, the social gathering’s central data secretary, mentioned the demand was easy and centered on securing “specialised remedy” for Khan.
“Whenever you deny the household entry, or the physicians advisable by the household, and whenever you break guarantees, how can we belief? We don’t even know what they’ve performed with him. We imagine the federal government is actually hiding one thing,” he instructed Al Jazeera.
Aleema mentioned she would maintain a information convention on Tuesday exterior Adiala jail and added that the household had not sought any concessions from authorities past medical entry.
“Imran’s sons have been attempting to go to Pakistan since final 12 months and have utilized a number of instances, however their visa has not been processed. It’s in limbo, they don’t get a denial, nor an approval,” she mentioned, referring to Kasim and Suleman, Khan’s two sons, who’re nationals of the UK.
The sons have been born throughout Khan’s first marriage to Jemima Goldsmith. The couple divorced in 2004 after 9 years of marriage. Each sons are primarily based in London.
Authorities rejects negligence claims
The federal government, in the meantime, has defended the medical board’s work. Legislation Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar mentioned the remedy supplied to Khan had led to enchancment and that the specialist group had expressed satisfaction together with his progress.
Talking at a public occasion on Monday, Tarar mentioned opposition leaders and Khan’s private medical doctors had been briefed.
Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry additionally mentioned the examination contained in the jail was carried out “in accordance with authorities directives and with full transparency”.
“The federal government supplied each vital facility on website to make sure no query of any negligence arises,” Chaudhry wrote on social media, including that Gohar Ali Khan, the PTI chairman in Khan’s absence, had been stored knowledgeable.
Imran Khan, a former Pakistan cricket captain who led Pakistan to its 1992 World Cup victory, turned prime minister in 2018.
He was eliminated in 2022 by means of a parliamentary no-confidence vote, which he mentioned was orchestrated by the army in collusion with Washington and his political rivals. Each the army and the US have denied the allegations.
Since his ouster, Khan has blamed Military Chief Subject Marshal Asim Munir for his authorized and political troubles and has repeatedly urged supporters to protest.
In June 2024, a United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that Khan’s detention “had no authorized foundation and seems to have been supposed to disqualify him from operating [for] political workplace”.
