Plea granted: Court allows Dr Asim to seek hydrotherapy

Former minister faces three cases and, of these, two are pertaining to corruption involving more than Rs400 billion

KARACHI: An accountability court allowed on Wednesday incarcerated former petroleum minister Dr Asim Hussain to seek hydrotherapy at Ziauddin Hospital.

Dr Asim had moved an application before the accountability court-IV judge, Saad Qureshi, for his hydrotherapy at a private hospital contending that the public hospital, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where he was kept, could not perform hydrotherapy.

The former minister faces three cases and, of these, two pertaining to corruption involving more than Rs400 billion are with the accountability court, while the third one about allegedly providing medical treatment to suspected militants is with an anti-terrorism court.

Dr Asim, through his counsel, contended before the judge that the medical board constituted on court orders, which examined him on his complaints of neurological and psychological ailments, had recommended hydrotherapy to him.

His lawyer told the judge that the said treatment was only available in a few private medical facilities and the best in these for hydrotherapy was Ziauddin Hospital, which is owned by him.

The judge, allowing the application, observed that the accused can obtain hydrotherapy at the hospital of his choice.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 17^th, 2016.