Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan was taken from Adiala Jail to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad late on Tuesday night for eye treatment and returned to prison in the early hours of Wednesday, sources have said. The 74-year-old, who has been in prison for more than three years, underwent an eye check-up and follow-up treatment for his right eye, according to officials quoted by Reuters.

Eye injection given at PIMS

A PIMS official told Dawn that Khan was brought to the hospital during the night between 10 and 11 November on the advice of his treating ophthalmologist. The official said his vital signs were normal, he was clinically stable, and the ophthalmology team gave him an intravitreal anti-VEGF injection after obtaining his informed consent. He was discharged at about 2:30am with instructions for further care and follow-up.

Health concerns continue

Khan's lawyers say his health has deteriorated in prison and that he has lost significant vision in his right eye. He has been receiving treatment for the eye since January, after complaining of vision loss. Reuters reported that the hospital visit was the first known occasion on which he had been taken out for treatment and returned to jail since August, when an earlier hospital visit was cut short.

The Supreme Court ordered on 18 August that Khan be moved to a private hospital for treatment, but he was instead taken to PIMS. Khan, who lost power in a no-confidence vote in 2022, faces more than 100 cases, including corruption charges, and has been held at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.