Islamabad, February 13 – The opposition alliance in Pakistan staged a sit-in near the Parliament House on Friday to protest against the health issues faced by former Prime Minister Imran Khan while in prison.
The Tehreek Tahafuz-i-Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP), which includes Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, took action a day after a report filed in the Supreme Court revealed that the 73-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician had lost 15 percent of his vision in his right eye.
The opposition alliance posted on social media that “a sit-in has started outside the Parliament House,” vowing to “continue until Imran Khan is admitted to Al-Shifa Hospital.”
“No compromise will be made on Imran Khan’s health,” the TTAP said, adding that
TTAP leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokar also claimed that the government “has cordoned off all roads leading to Parliament” ahead of the sit-in.
He also said that “gates of parliamentary lodges have been shut, trapping MNAs (members of the National Assembly) and Senators inside.”
He said that these measures were being taken to prevent the opposition lawmakers from protesting and demanding medical access to Khan. “This does not reflect strength, but rather weakness,” he said.
However, former Speaker Asad Qaiser said that PTI lawmakers reached Parliament “after overcoming all the obstacles in their way” ahead of the sit-in.
Qaiser said that providing the best medical facilities is Khan’s legal and constitutional right. “No compromise will be made on Khan’s health. If our demands are not met, we will announce our next course of action,” he said.
Earlier in the day, TTAP chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai announced the protest sit-in outside Parliament after reports about Khan’s vision.
Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Thursday ordered authorities to set up a medical board to examine jailed Khan’s eyes following a report about vision loss in one of them.
The apex court also ordered authorities to allow the
Khan has been in jail since August 5, 2023, when he was arrested at his Lahore residence after his conviction in a corruption case. Currently, he is incarcerated at the high-security Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi.
