ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government on Thursday confirmed that jailed former prime minister Imran Khan was taken to a public hospital over the weekend for a brief eye procedure, saying his condition was stable and routine, as his opposition party renewed concerns over his health and the lack of information shared with his family and lawyers.
The episode has added to long-running tensions surrounding Khan’s incarceration, which has become a flashpoint in Pakistan’s polarized politics. Khan, who served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, has been in prison since August 2023 following multiple convictions that he and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party say are politically motivated, a claim the government denies.
News of Khan’s hospital visit first emerged on Wednesday in Pakistan’s leading English-language daily Dawn, prompting PTI leaders to hold a news conference and question why neither Khan’s family nor his legal team had been informed in advance.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed on Thursday that Khan was moved on Jan. 24 from Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), a major public hospital in Islamabad, on the advice of eye specialists.
