Imran Khan To Be Shifted To New Jail With Medical Facilities: Pak Minister

Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told the media on Friday that the former prime minister of the country, Imran Khan, will be transferred to the new Islamabad jail once the facility is fully constructed within the next two months. The new jail would have medical facilities, Naqvi said.

He also added that since Khan was convicted by an Islamabad court, he would be moved to a prison in the capital.

Naqvi's comments come as reports of Khan suffering a devastating loss of eyesight, severe health deterioration, and prolonged solitary confinement inside Adiala Jail have surfaced.

According to a damning report by a court-appointed lawyer that exposes what his aides described as "deliberate, inhuman, and illegal treatment" carried out under the watch of Pakistan's powerful military establishment, Khan has suffered a devastating loss of eyesight, severe health deterioration, and prolonged solitary confinement inside Adiala Jail.

Read | Imran Khan Loses 85% Vision After "Inhuman" Abuse In Pakistani Jail

A detailed report prepared by the Supreme Court-appointed amicus curiae (friend of the court) Salman Safdar, accessed by NDTV, reveals that Imran Khan has lost nearly 85 per cent of vision in his right eye after jail authorities allegedly ignored repeated medical complaints for months.

Previously, Khan's sister Aleema had filed a contempt of court petition against the Adiala jail superintendent, Abdul Ghafoor Anjum, and party officials have alleged negligence by him.

Pakistan's Supreme Court on Thursday set a February 16th deadline for his medical examination. Chief Justice of Pakistan, Yahya Afridi, said, "The issue of Imran's health is most important," and added that "intervention was necessary."

The two-member bench also said that Khan must also be allowed to speak to his children.

Prime Minister's Adviser on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, said that Khan would be allowed to undergo an eye examination by any doctor he chooses. He has dismissed reports of Khan's medical complaints being ignored for months and claimed that the opposition was trying to politicise the eye problem.

For Khan's supporters, the findings confirm long-held allegations that Pakistan's military-led deep state is using incarceration as a weapon to physically and psychologically break a popular civilian leader. As one line in the report starkly records Khan's own words: he "expects nothing beyond the basic necessities essential for his survival."