‘This isn’t politics’: Brian Lara calls for dignity, proper medical care for Imran Khan

WEB DESK: West Indies batting great Brian Lara has joined a growing group of former international cricket captains calling for proper and independent medical care for former prime minister and 1992 World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan, saying the issue was one of “basic humanity”, not politics.

Lara, who faced Khan on the cricket field a handful of times during their playing careers, made the appeal in a post on Instagram, saying he was struggling to understand how a man who had once been “a beacon of hope, pride and inspiration” for Pakistan could now be in a situation where he was not being treated with the compassion and dignity he deserved.

“Imran Khan and I only crossed paths on the field a handful of times, but the respect I have for him was instant and lasting,” Lara said.

“I stand with my fellow former captains in asking that he receive proper, independent medical care and the dignity every human being deserves. This isn’t politics. It’s basic humanity for a legend of our game.”

He said, “This isn’t politics,” he said. “It’s basic humanity for a legend of our game.”

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Lara’s call follows an appeal last month by 21 former international captains, who wrote to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asking the government to ensure Khan received medical treatment in line with a Supreme Court directive.

The appeal was the second such letter in six months from former cricket players concerned about the health and welfare of Khan, 73, who has been held in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi since August 2023.

On August 23, the Supreme Court directed the government to transfer Khan to Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad for examination and treatment by a multidisciplinary medical board.

The court had also directed that Khan’s personal physician and sister, Dr Uzma Khan, be associated with his medical care, and ordered authorities to facilitate weekly meetings with family members and twice-weekly telephone calls with his sons.

The former captains said the court-directed medical process had not been completed as ordered.

Khan was instead taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) where he was examined by a team of doctors and subsequently declared medically ‘fit’ before being returned to Adiala jail after a few hours.

The government said the examination was carried out in accordance with the Supreme Court’s directions and that doctors from Shifa International Hospital were also present.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the decision to take Khan to PIMS rather than Shifa was made because of security concerns linked to protests and gatherings by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supporters.

The government has rejected allegations that Khan is being denied adequate medical care or mistreated in prison.

It said that Khan had undergone around 30 medical examinations since his imprisonment and had been assessed by specialists and medical teams from institutions including PIMS, Shifa International Hospital, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital.

The government also said that official records showed more than 900 visits by family members, lawyers, doctors, political representatives and other approved visitors since Khan was jailed, disputing claims that he had been isolated or denied access to people close to him.

The dispute over Khan’s health centres in part on an eye condition that emerged earlier this year.

Khan’s family and PTI have expressed concern over his eyesight, with his family saying he had suffered significant loss of vision in his right eye and accusing authorities of failing to provide adequate treatment.

Prison authorities told the Supreme Court in August that Khan’s vision had improved significantly and was “almost normal”. They said he had been treated for right central retinal vein occlusion, an eye condition that had come to light in January.

The Supreme Court subsequently ordered his hospitalisation after hearing petitions seeking access to specialised treatment, his personal physicians, family members and his medical records. The government challenged the order, arguing that transferring a convicted prisoner to a private hospital could create a precedent for other inmates and questioning the legal basis for the directive.

The international cricket figures who signed the August appeal said they were not seeking to interfere in Pakistan’s legal or political affairs.

They said they were writing as former colleagues and rivals who shared a bond with Khan through cricket and wanted to see a court-ordered medical process completed.

The signatories included prominent former captains such as India’s Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev, Australia’s Greg Chappell, Ian Chappell and Allan Border, West Indies great Clive Lloyd, Sri Lanka’s Arjuna Ranatunga, England’s Michael Atherton, David Gower and Nasser Hussain, and New Zealand’s John Wright.

The group made three main requests: that the medical board ordered by the Supreme Court, including Khan’s personal doctors, be allowed to complete its assessment; that weekly family visits ordered by the court take place without interruption; and that any treatment recommended following the assessment be provided without delay.

The August appeal followed an earlier letter sent in February by 14 former international captains, who had raised concerns over reports of Khan’s deteriorating eyesight.

Khan’s supporters have repeatedly accused authorities of politically motivated prosecutions and mistreatment in prison. The government has rejected those allegations and says he is being held following convictions by courts in a series of cases.

Khan, who founded the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, served as prime minister from 2018 until he was removed from office in a parliamentary no-confidence vote in April 2022.

His party has maintained that the cases against him are politically motivated, while the government denies the charge.

The former cricketer’s imprisonment has also attracted scrutiny from international rights groups, which have raised concerns about aspects of his trials and detention conditions.

Lara’s appeal adds the voice of one of the most celebrated figures in international cricket to a campaign that has increasingly brought Khan’s health and prison conditions into the international spotlight.