The justice minister said the injection was administered and the procedure was successful; The founder of the PTI benefits from all the facilities provided by law
A combination photo of Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and PTI founder Imran Khan. PHOTO: APP/EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar informed the Senate on Tuesday that Pakistan Tehreek e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan was taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) at his own request.
PIMS had previously confirmed that Imran was taken to hospital where, after obtaining consent, he was given an intravitreal injection of anti-VEGF to treat a right central retinal vein occlusion. The PTI rejected the PIMS report on Imran’s eye treatment, demanding that he be treated at Shaukat Khanum Hospital and his family be allowed to meet him.
Speaking in the Senate today, the law minister termed PIMS Islamabad as a leading public tertiary hospital and said a medical board had examined Imran, administered the required injection and noted positive progress.
Read: Imran Khan taken to hospital for minor eye procedure, confirms Tarar
Tarar said the former prime minister would have asked to be taken away in the evening if there were potential problems related to law and order. “The PTI founder faced a specific problem,” Tarar said, adding that Imran had personally requested that the injection be administered to him at PIMS.
Stating that Imran’s health was “completely good” and his procedure was successful, Tarar said there were no more issues regarding the former prime minister. He also said that the details of the diagnosis and treatment were officially shared in a press briefing by the Executive Director of PIMS.
Tarar assured the Senate that if any further medical needs arise, all facilities will be provided as per law. He said the federal government fully respected human rights and had never issued a directive prohibiting the denial of medical treatment to a prisoner.
However, the law minister stressed that any further relief regarding medical care, meetings or conditions of detention must be sought from the Islamabad High Court, which was the competent appellate body in the matter.
Further, the minister said that Imran was a convicted prisoner in corruption cases and was being provided with all medical and legal facilities as per law and prison rules.
Responding to a point raised by Leader of Opposition in the Senate Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, Tarar said the Constitution guaranteed the rights of every individual, but the implementation of these rights was regulated by legal procedures.
Learn more: PTI rejects PIMS report, calls for treatment of Imran Khan in Shaukat Khanum
He said the former prime minister was convicted after a full public trial that lasted more than a year in a National Accountability Bureau corruption case and was currently serving his sentence as an incarcerated prisoner.
The minister said the former prime minister was also convicted in another case involving undervaluation of a jewelry set, in which assets worth millions of rupees were exposed at a much lower price, causing a loss to the national exchequer.
