Sarabjit is ‘brain dead’
Lawyer hints he is already dead; India keeps fingers crossed
Sarabjit Singh, the Indian on death row in Pakistan who was attacked in a Lahore jail, is much closer to death than previously thought and some say he might even be brain dead.
“He is not dead but he is closer to death than life. He is in a very, very critical condition,” an official at Jinnah Hospital in Lahore, where Sarabjit is being treated, said.
Other sources said the death row prisoner might be already brain dead and his lawyer Awais Sheikh also hinted that may be the case.
Doctors at Jinnah Hospital, however, believe Singh can still be brought revived and that he is still “alive” and not “brain dead”. But Dr Mehmood Shaukat, the head of a fourmember medical board supervising Sarabjit’s treatment, confirmed his condition had deteriorated since he was brought to the hospital on Friday.
“We are providing him the best medical care but he has shown no signs of improvement yet. We are determined to save his life,” Dr Shaukat said.
He said the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of the patient is being monitored daily. Media reports said that Sarabjit’s condition was five on the GCS, which indicates the level of damage to a person's central nervous system. The lowest possible GCS level is three while the highest is 15.
Meanwhile, Indian members of an Indo-Pak judicial committee on prisoners visited Sarabjit. Retired judges A.S. Gill and M.A. Khan came to Jinnah Hospital and inquired about his condition from doctors treating him.
In New Delhi, external affairs minister Salman Khurshid told reporters, “The morning bulletin was not very encouraging... the parameters were falling. Just keeping our fingers crossed. Frankly hoping for the best to happen.... I hope that he would be able to recover.”
Sarabjit’s sister Dalbir Kaur is now planning to return to India to seek advice on his brothers treatment. However, it was not immediately clear whether Sarabjit’s wife and two daughters would also return. Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan Sharat Sabharwal will also visit the prisoner in the hospital.