ISLAMABAD: A renowned Kashmiri female leader Mishaal Malik staged a sit-in outside the Children’s Ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) to protest against the casualties of several infants.
Mishaal Malik is wife of jailed Hurriyat leader Yasin Malik, who joined the families of infants died in the fire incident.
She protested after hospital authorities stopped her and her daughter from entering the premises following the recent fire tragedy. Speaking to reporters, Mishaal said the entire nation was mourning the deaths of 14 newborns at PIMS.
She accused the hospital administration of negligence and claimed officials denied her repeated requests to enter the ward.
Calls for Accountability
Mishaal recalled an incident in 2005 when her father allegedly received the wrong medicine at PIMS.
She said the latest tragedy reflected what she described as systemic failures within the hospital.
“This is human failure for which the government is responsible,” she said, demanding immediate accountability.
Moreover, Mishaal called for the resignation of the federal health minister over the incident.
She said the fire had exposed serious weaknesses in hospital management and safety procedures.
The protest followed the August 26 fire in the Mother and Child Health nursery ward.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif suspended the health secretary and ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident.
The official teams are still probing the tragedy and gathering evidence and statements of the PIMS staff and families of victims.
