Former PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi hospitalised after heart attack

Doctors confirmed the former PM suffered a cardiac episode; two blocked arteries treated with stents, say sources

Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was hospitalised after suffering a heart attack and is currently receiving treatment at a private medical facility in the federal capital.

According to Express News, Abbasi was shifted to Al-Shifa Hospital on Saturday after he complained of severe chest pain at his residence in Islamabad. Doctors later confirmed that the former premier had suffered a cardiac episode.

Medical examinations revealed blockages in two of his coronary arteries, hospital sources said. Cardiologists subsequently inserted two stents to restore proper blood flow.

Read: PM vows full support to K-P govt for peace

Abbasi remains under observation, though doctors have stated that his condition is now stable and out of danger. Further medical evaluation is under way, and he is expected to remain in the hospital for monitoring.

A close ally of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Abbasi, 67, was sworn in as prime minister in August 2017 following a landmark Supreme Court ruling on the Panama Papers case, in which Sharif was disqualified from office.

An electrical engineer by training, Abbasi was educated in the United States, earning a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a master’s from George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Representing a constituency in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Abbasi entered politics in 1988 after the death of his father, a member of Parliament and a retired Pakistan Air Force commodore. He won the by-election for his father’s seat and went on to be elected to Parliament six times, losing only once.

After losing the 2002 election, Abbasi founded Airblue Limited, a private budget airline. He returned to Parliament in 2008, serving as commerce minister, and later as minister for petroleum and natural resources in 2013 when Sharif returned to power.

Also Read: Retired officers accused of backdating documents in Railways housing fraud

Abbasi’s loyalty to Sharif has been a constant throughout his career. He spent two years in prison after the 1999 military coup that ousted Sharif. During his detention, he was reportedly pressured to testify against Sharif but refused. He was later acquitted of all charges.

In July 2017, following Sharif’s disqualification, Abbasi was chosen by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) to serve as interim prime minister — a role he was expected to hold until Shehbaz Sharif could secure a parliamentary seat.

However, his tenure was short-lived. In 2019, Abbasi was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in a multi-billion-rupee case related to the award of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import contract. He spent months in jail before being released on bail the following year.

Abbasi, who parted ways with the PML-N in 2023, announced the formation of a new party, Awaam Pakistan, in July 2024 along with former finance minister Miftah Ismail, months after being acquitted in the LNG case.