PTI chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday served a Rs10 billion notice on Health Minister Qadir Patel for his claims regarding his medical report issued last week.
In his presser, the minister had claimed that a panel of five experts doctors had declared the former premier's mental state as 'questionable', while saying that he had a massive volume of alcohol and cocaine in his urine samples, as per the PIMS report.
Sent under Section 8 of the Defamation Ordinance, 2002, the notice pointed out "wrongful, baseless, false, misleading, erroneous, malicious and defamatory" information during the May 26 presser.
"The press conference was watched in Pakistan as well as all over the world through electronic media channels, YouTube and various other social media platforms. Moreover, details regarding the press conference were also published in newspapers nationally as well as internationally," it added.
The communiqué went on to add that Imran sustained a head injury on the day of his "illegal arrest" on May 9 but that the medical report shared by the minister had no mention of it.
It further noted that while the report stressed "a lot" about his mental state, there were 'no details of an examination' carried out in this regard.
Read this too: Imran’s Mental Stability ‘Questionable’ As Per Medical Report: Qadir Patel
According to the former premier, Patel made the remarks “knowingly, consciously, willingly, deliberately and maliciously”.
The remarks, he maintained, are also in “violation of the standards and ethics which [a] member of the federal cabinet must possess.”
The notice added that the claims caused damage to the PTI chief’s goodwill, “injury to his reputation”, and adversely affected his “honour”.
“Likewise, you (Qadir Patel) have also caused emotional trauma, mental agony and anguish and distress to our client,” it said.
The communiqué called on the minister to retract his statements “in the same mode and manner in which you made them in the first place” and tender an unconditional apology and admit “you have misstated”.
It called on him to pay Rs10bn, which would be donated to Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, for defaming Imran and levelling false allegations against him.
The PTI chairman, the notice said, would be compelled to initiate legal proceedings if the minister failed to take the said steps within a span of 15 days.
In his presser, the minister had claimed that a panel of five experts doctors had declared the former premier's mental state as 'questionable', while saying that he had a massive volume of alcohol and cocaine in his urine samples, as per the PIMS report.
Sent under Section 8 of the Defamation Ordinance, 2002, the notice pointed out "wrongful, baseless, false, misleading, erroneous, malicious and defamatory" information during the May 26 presser.
"The press conference was watched in Pakistan as well as all over the world through electronic media channels, YouTube and various other social media platforms. Moreover, details regarding the press conference were also published in newspapers nationally as well as internationally," it added.
The communiqué went on to add that Imran sustained a head injury on the day of his "illegal arrest" on May 9 but that the medical report shared by the minister had no mention of it.
It further noted that while the report stressed "a lot" about his mental state, there were 'no details of an examination' carried out in this regard.
Read this too: Imran’s Mental Stability ‘Questionable’ As Per Medical Report: Qadir Patel
According to the former premier, Patel made the remarks “knowingly, consciously, willingly, deliberately and maliciously”.
The remarks, he maintained, are also in “violation of the standards and ethics which [a] member of the federal cabinet must possess.”
The notice added that the claims caused damage to the PTI chief’s goodwill, “injury to his reputation”, and adversely affected his “honour”.
“Likewise, you (Qadir Patel) have also caused emotional trauma, mental agony and anguish and distress to our client,” it said.
The communiqué called on the minister to retract his statements “in the same mode and manner in which you made them in the first place” and tender an unconditional apology and admit “you have misstated”.
It called on him to pay Rs10bn, which would be donated to Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, for defaming Imran and levelling false allegations against him.
The PTI chairman, the notice said, would be compelled to initiate legal proceedings if the minister failed to take the said steps within a span of 15 days.