ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s jailed opposition leader and former prime minister Imran Khan underwent his fourth eye procedure on April 28 at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), as concerns over his health and prison conditions continue to deepen, according to Dawn News.
According to hospital officials, Khan, 74, received a fourth intravitreal anti-VEGF injection as part of ongoing treatment for a serious eye condition known as central retinal vein occlusion. Doctors said he was examined before the procedure and found to be clinically stable, with test results showing signs of improvement. The treatment was carried out as a day-care procedure, and he was later discharged and returned to Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail.
This latest procedure follows earlier injections administered in January, February, and March, marking a continuing medical effort to restore vision that has reportedly declined in recent months.
However, the medical update has done little to calm political tensions. Leaders of Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have renewed criticism of the government, saying the former premier is being denied basic rights. They argue that despite repeated treatments, he has not been allowed access to his personal doctors or to receive care under family supervision.
More significantly, PTI and rights advocates allege that Khan has been held in solitary confinement for months, with restricted or denied meetings with family members, friends, and legal counsel, raising serious legal and humanitarian concerns.
Opposition figures say such prolonged isolation violates both prison rules and international human rights standards. They have demanded that Khan be moved to a private hospital and allowed regular contact with his family and legal team.
The government, however, has consistently rejected these claims, maintaining that Khan is receiving appropriate medical care and that prison conditions meet legal requirements.
As Pakistan’s political divide deepens, Khan’s health and detention conditions remain at the center of a growing national debate, one that blends medical urgency with questions of justice, transparency, and human rights.
