File photo of Dr. Faisal Sultan
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s personal physician, Dr. Faisal Sultan, on Thursday informed media there are no indications of the former prime minister being “slow-poisoned” in custody, as has been repeatedly alleged by Khan’s lawyers in recent weeks.
Addressing a press conference outside Adiala Jail after examining Khan, he said he had found the PTI chief “fit” during their meeting. To a question, he said the PTI chief had no symptoms of poisoning, adding such a condition is initially gauged through physical examination and ailments such as weakness and loss of appetite. “The former prime minister is hale and hearty,” he added.
To another query, he said Khan had not complained about the food he was being given in prison, adding he was engaging in regular exercise while incarcerated. He said he and the PTI chief had discussed various matters during their meeting, including the functioning of the Shaukat Khanum Hospital.
Over the past few weeks, both Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and his lawyers have repeatedly alleged he could be “poisoned” in custody, demanding the court allow the provision of home-cooked food for him. Earlier this week, one of Khan’s lawyers took things a step further by alleging Khan was being “poisoned,” adding he was also being administered toxic chemicals via his shoes. However, within a few hours of issuing this statement, he backtracked and said he was “misunderstood.”
The PTI chief also met his legal team at Adiala Jail on Thursday and was visited by the Rawalpindi police, which recorded his statement on his alleged involvement in the May 9 riots.
Khan was arrested in August after being convicted in the Toshakhana case and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended his sentence pending appeals against his conviction, but he has remained under arrest in the cipher case, in which he was indicted last week. The IHC has already rejected his plea for post-arrest bail in the cipher case, and the PTI has now approached the Supreme Court for an intra-court appeal seeking the approval of his bail.