Medical report submitted in local court advises Nawaz Sharif against traveling to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: A medical report submitted in a Pakistani court on Tuesday said the country’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif should not travel to his country due to medical complications that might cause risk to his life.
Sharif was found guilty in a corruption reference by an accountability court in Pakistan and sent to jail for 10 years in December 2018. He began his prison term in his country but was temporarily released on medical grounds.
Subsequently, he left Pakistan in November 2019 to seek medical treatment in London. However, he did not return to his country since then.
The government has tried to bring him back by negotiating an agreement with the United Kingdom for the repatriation of convicted citizens. It has also used Pakistani courts where several cases remain pending against him and his close relatives.
“In my opinion, until he [Nawaz Sharif] gets coronary angiography he should ... stay in close proximity to the facilities he has been getting ... until [the end of] COVID-19,” said the report submitted in the Lahore High Court which was later mentioned by local media outlets and circulated on social media platforms.
“His co-morbidities make him a ‘high risk’ candidate for death, respiratory failure etc., should he contract COVID-19 infection,” it added.
Prepared by Dr. Fayaz Shawl, a senior cardiologist in the United States who has treated Sharif since 2004, the medical report said the former prime minister was “advised to have a healthy diet and exercise regularly.”
“In addition, he was strongly advised to manage his stress to the maximum extent to avoid what happened during his imprisonment [in Pakistan],” the document continued. “Any further solitary confinement for a prolonged period will have negative effect toward his life.”
The report maintained that Sharif should “proceed with his coronary angiography and possible angioplasty” or redo coronary artery bypass graft surgery once the pandemic was over.
Pakistan’s information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said the medical report was fabricated, adding the Sharif family should return the people of Pakistan their money.
“Such fake reports are not going to serve his purpose,” he maintained.
Hussain said he was hopeful that Pakistani courts would take notice of how the former prime minister left the country and submitted fabricated reports to stay away from Pakistan.

Medical report submitted in local court advises Nawaz Sharif against traveling to Pakistan