ISLAMABAD:
Heated scenes unfolded in the Senate on Thursday after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senators staged a protest over Imran Khan’s health, placing his photographs on their desk, drawing objections from Treasury members and eventually forcing the President to adjourn the proceedings.
The face-off followed remarks by Opposition Leader and Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen (MWM) chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, who told the house that PTI founder Imran Khan had lost 85 per cent of vision in one eye due to alleged medical negligence during his detention.
In response, the prime minister’s political advisor, Rana Sanaullah, proposed to the opposition that if a better specialist than those at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) was available, Imran could also be examined there.
The house met here under the chairmanship of President Waqar Mehdi. Abbas spoke early in the proceedings, telling lawmakers that a report submitted to the Supreme Court confirmed that Imran had developed an eye disease that had gone untreated for three months.
According to Abbas, Khan informed the prison director of his eye problem and was taken to PIMS Hospital, although the facility does not have a specialist for the condition. He said Imran received injections at PIMS but still suffered 85% vision loss.
“In Islam, compensation for the loss of an eye is half of the compensation for the loss of a life,” Abbas said, adding that the prison fell under Punjab’s jurisdiction and the provincial government should be held responsible.
He requested that Imran be examined by medical specialists Dr Aamir or Dr Mazhar Sohail in Rawalpindi or Islamabad. The Opposition Leader told the House that he was writing letters to ambassadors regarding this injustice meted out to the PTI founder.
In response, Sanaullah, a senior leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), said lawyer Salman Safdar’s report in the Supreme Court detailed all the facilities provided to Imran, including exercise machines and proper meals, in jail.
He noted that the chief justice had observed that the reports of Safdar and the prison superintendent were identical. He pointed out that the apex court report did not indicate that treatment was denied, adding that whenever Imran raised his concerns, medical treatment was arranged.
“The best possible treatment in the country has been provided. If a better specialist is available at the cancer hospital than at PIMS, Imran could also be examined there,” Sanaullah told the upper house of parliament.
Noting that the Supreme Court had authorized further specialist consultations if necessary, the prime minister’s advisor told the House that whatever was agreed with Imran’s lawyers would be implemented.
As business resumed, Abbas sought to speak again, but was told by the president that he would be given more time later. At that point, PTI senators stood up from their seats and started chanting slogans, thereby increasing tensions in the House.
PML-N’s Nasir Butt objected to the display of Imran Khan’s photographs on the desks of opposition lawmakers, saying they had brought images of a person who was not a member of the house and had been convicted by a court. He asked that the photos be removed.
The Speaker reminded members that Senate decisions prohibit slogans and the display of photographs inside the Chamber. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the Senate was a sacred house where even non-members were not allowed to enter, insisting that the images be removed.
PTI senator Falak Naz Chitrali retorted that the government should not lecture them on the law, prompting Tarar to warn that the proceedings would be suspended. As the PTI members refused to comply and continued their chants, the chamber descended into disorder.
Amid the uproar, Senator Waqar Mehdi adjourned the Senate session until Friday (today).
