ISLAMABAD: Pakistani journalist Matiullah Jan, recently freed after being detained during his coverage of protest-related deaths in Islamabad, has accused the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) staff of concealing casualty information.
“There is no doubt that records were being hidden. We were informed that PIMS had taken control of all files related to injured individuals with bullet wounds, allegedly on orders from Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi,” Matiullah stated during an appearance on Spotlight with Munizae Jahangir, aired on Aaj News on Monday.
He was released from Adiala Jail on November 30 after being granted bail by an Islamabad anti-terrorism court in a terrorism and narcotics case. He had been detained on November 28, with his son alleging that unidentified individuals had abducted him.
Jan claimed that government records regarding casualties were inaccessible. “We saw a death register in the emergency ward, but critical information was hidden,” he said. Recounting his experience, he described visiting the hospital on November 27 at 11:30 p.m. to investigate the casualties. Upon leaving, masked individuals reportedly abducted him, placed a cloth over his head, and detained him for about an hour before bringing him back to PIMS for a mandatory medical check following an arrest.
“At the hospital, in front of policemen, the doctor didn’t even question the identity of those masked men. Instead, he asked me questions as if he were a policeman, not a doctor,” Jan added.
The show’s host, Munizae Jahangir, also shared her observations. She noted that a Poly Clinic doctor who had signed the register containing details of the deceased refused to speak to the press, citing restrictions. Efforts to contact the hospital spokesperson were unsuccessful.
When asked, Jan clarified that during his hospital visit, he only heard gunshots but did not have access to D-Chowk, the protest site. He emphasized the lack of transparency, saying, “Whenever tragedies occur, lists of the deceased and arrested should be issued. Families need to know where their loved ones are. Documents I reviewed suggest seven to eight deaths, with some individuals sustaining gunshot wounds. Files were deliberately hidden.”
Maritime Affairs Minister Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, who was also on the program, said he was unaware of details surrounding the incident but mentioned that police personnel from his constituency, Chiniot, were injured in clashes with PTI protesters.
PTI leader Shoaib Shaheen, appearing via video link, stated that the party was collecting data on the incident and had tasked Latif Khosa with filing a petition for an impartial judicial commission inquiry. He dismissed claims that PTI protesters were armed, although the host pointed out evidence of protesters using stones and slingshots, which may have caused injuries to police officers.
Shaheen added that some media reports suggested a speeding car that killed three Rangers personnel was driven by a mentally ill individual. Meanwhile, Sheikh urged all parties to seek independent investigations or legal recourse to address the incident.
