Former foreign minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice-chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been shifted from Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail to the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) for cardiac tests, days after he collapsed inside his prison barrack and injured his knee and arm.
The 70-year-old politician was taken to the hospital on Tuesday morning, arriving at about 11am, after his health deteriorated in custody. His lawyer, Rana Mudassar Umar, confirmed to Dawn that Qureshi had been moved to the PIC for a medical examination, saying he had fainted and suffered a fall a few days earlier.
According to his legal team, Qureshi became dizzy while walking inside his barrack and fell to the ground, injuring his knee and arm. His counsel, Barrister Taimoor Malik, put the date of the fall at 4 November. Jail authorities collected blood samples after the incident and sent them to Shaukat Khanum Hospital for testing, while the PTI's core committee pressed for his immediate transfer to hospital for a full medical examination.
Reports that he may have suffered a heart attack circulated soon after his transfer, but hospital officials have been careful to say that a heart attack has not yet been medically confirmed. Doctors at the PIC have collected blood samples for cardiac investigations and are awaiting the laboratory results before reaching a final diagnosis. They are also considering a coronary angiography to examine the condition of his heart arteries.
Medical officials have described Qureshi as out of immediate danger, though he remains under close observation at the hospital. His lawyer said he would be kept under observation for 24 hours, after which doctors would decide whether he should continue treatment at the hospital or be shifted back to jail.
Qureshi's son, Zain, said he had met his father in jail, where the former minister told him he had collapsed while walking in his barrack. He has asked the prison authorities to arrange a CT scan so that his father's condition can be thoroughly assessed, a request his legal team has also raised.
The transfer follows an application submitted to an anti-terrorism court seeking medical attention for Qureshi, which his lawyer said was delayed because of court holidays. The PTI had earlier called for a comprehensive medical examination, arguing that his health required hospital care rather than treatment inside the prison.
Qureshi has been in custody since August 2023 in multiple cases linked to the May 9, 2023 riots, which broke out after the arrest of then party chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan. He has remained behind bars through a series of cases arising from those protests, and his health in detention has repeatedly become a matter of public concern.
This is not the first time Qureshi has needed hospital treatment while in custody. In May 2025 he was taken to the same institute after complaining of chest pain and shortness of breath, and in October and November 2025 he was transferred to hospital and underwent surgery after developing gallstones, before being moved back to jail.
What happens next depends on the results of the cardiac tests now under way. Doctors are expected to decide within a day whether Qureshi stays in hospital for further treatment, including a possible angiography, or returns to Kot Lakhpat Jail. His legal team is also awaiting a hearing on its application for his medical care, while the PTI continues to press the authorities over the health of its jailed leaders.
