PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa government has demanded that a team of doctors from the province be allowed to medically examine PTI leader Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and determine the truth behind his injuries.

A report submitted by the deputy super­in­tendent of Adiala Jail, where Mr Elahi is incarcerated, claimed that the PTI leader fell in his cell’s washroom on March 17 and suffered a minor injury.

Prison doctors have advised the former Punjab chief minister against travelling for two weeks, according to the report submitted to an anti-corruption court.

In a statement issued on Sunday, KP government’s spokesperson, Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, said the examination would determine whether the PTI leader got injured after falling in a bathroom or was tortured by the prison authorities.

Barrister Saif demands permission for a medical team to visit ex-CM, establish ‘truth’ of his injuries

Mr Saif, who is also an adviser to the KP chief minister on information, demanded the Punjab government allow the team access to Mr Elahi.

He said the Punjab government’s attitude towards the senior PTI leader was alarming and a cause of “serious concern” for the leadership and workers of PTI.

“We want to know through doc­tors from KP the reasons beh­ind the imp­ri­soned leader’s injuries,” he said.

The party has “serious concerns” over Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s torture of political opponents and over the security of PTI founding chairman Imran Khan and other party leaders inside the jail.

He warned CM Maryam that if torture on Mr Elahi was proven, a criminal case would be registered against her.

The CM would be held responsible according to the UN Convention against Torture, under which physical, mental and emotional torture is a crime.

Mr Saif added that PTI would adopt a legal recourse if doctors from KP were not granted permission for Mr Elahi’s medical examination.

The Punjab government has ban­ned meetings with prisoners on the pretext of security, which is a violation of international laws, he claimed.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2024