The medical check-up of PTI founder Imran Khan has been completed by a newly formed board comprising five doctors and staffers at Adiala jail following instructions from the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
The jailed PTI founder has been diagnosed with central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO), a serious eye condition, according to a report submitted to the Supreme Court by his lawyer and the court’s amicus curiae, Salman Safdar.
The condition occurs when the main vein draining blood from the retina becomes blocked and is often associated with cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and heart disease.
Sources said on Wednesday that the medical team, comprising five doctors and supporting medical staff, completed a thorough two-hour assessment during which they examined the PTI founder’s affected eye.
In a statement, the jail administration said that the Islamabad chief commissioner had formed a new medical board comprising specialist doctors for the health assessment of the jailed former prime minister.
The team includes ENT specialist Professor Altaf Hussain, cardiologist Professor Akhtar Ali Bandesha, Dr Muhammad Ali Arif, and Professor Nadeem Qureshi from Al-Shifa Eye Hospital.
The medical board will submit a comprehensive report to the chief commissioner shortly, the statement concluded.
Last week, the IHC directed the capital city’s chief commissioner to constitute a medical board to assess the health condition of ex-PM Khan, while rejecting a petition seeking his transfer to a private hospital.
The petition had requested Khan’s transfer to Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, for eye treatment and was heard by a division bench comprising Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir and Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro.
In a three-page order, the court instructed the medical board to submit its recommendations to the chief commissioner at the earliest.
Based on the board’s report, the chief commissioner will decide, under the law and relevant prison rules, whether Khan should be shifted outside prison or continue treatment in jail. The bench emphasised that prison authorities must inform relatives if a serious medical condition arises.
The court noted that under the Pakistan Prison Rules, the government holds the authority to transfer a convicted prisoner for special treatment. It clarified that Section 561-A of the Criminal Procedure Code cannot override executive powers to move prisoners.
The IHC ordered that Khan’s family must be kept informed of his condition, with Dr Qureshi remaining in contact. It also reaffirmed that Khan should continue to meet his lawyers and family members, as directed by a larger bench.
Earlier, the former prime minister had been taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad twice from Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail for treatment of his right eye.
His most recent visit took place on February 24 under tight security for a scheduled follow-up examination, marking his second trip to the hospital since late January. He is expected to receive the third injection in the treatment course on March 23.