Nawaz Sharif being given Polonium to die slow death: Altaf Hussain

Muttahida Qaumi Movement founder Altaf Hussain posted a research article, 'Polonium - A Perfect Poison' on his Twitter handle claiming that former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been given polonium. Hussain stressed that the mysterious and deteriorating medical condition of any person exposed to polonium need some serious screening and thorough investigations.

London:Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain has claimed that former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been given polonium, the drug which slowly poisoned Yasser Arafat, famed Palestinian president, to death in 2004.

"Lower platelets count in Nawaz Sharif's body! A known fact is that 'Polonium' (radioactive element) is used to eliminate enemies. It acts as a slow poison and destroys platelets. Only specialised radioactive laboratory can verify it. International laboratory must examine it," Hussain first tweeted on November 2.

On Tuesday, Hussain posted a research article, 'Polonium - A Perfect Poison' on his Twitter handle, after several questions were put up to him regarding his earlier post on the micro-blogging site.

"Dear Students and Followers! Here is my research article on 'Polonium-A Perfect Poison' in reply to questions put up by people about my 2nd November 2019 tweet regarding #Polonium. I tried my level best to give answers on this important subject. Please read it thoroughly," Hussain wrote alongside the article, which briefs about polonium, its symptoms and treatment.

"Besides Yasser Arafat, Irene Joliot Curie (1956), a Nobel Laureate and daughter of Madam Curie and Alexander Litvinenko (2006) are some of the known/suspicious victims of polonium poisoning," Hussain has claimed in his article.

"The mysterious and deteriorating medical condition of any person exposed to polonium need some serious screening and thorough investigations from globally recognised and reputed radioactive laboratories," said Hussain.

Polonium radiation destroys DNA and can lead to cell death and cancer. It is a known carcinogen. When inhaled, polonium causes lung cancer. When swallowed, it becomes concentrated in red blood cells, before spreading to other important organs like liver, kidneys, and bone marrow. Sharif was discharged from the Services Institute of Medical Sciences (SIMS) in Lahore and shifted to his residence Jati Umra on Wednesday.

The 69-year-old leader was admitted to the SIMS on October 22 after his health conditions deteriorated drastically due to 'critically' low platelet count.

An Intensive Care Unit (ICU) has been set up at Sharif's residence and the doctors have put a ban on the people visiting him, Marriyum Aurangzeb, spokesperson of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), said in a statement.

Adding that there were chances that an infection might develop due to low platelet counts, Aurangzeb said that doctors had suggested the setting up of a special medical unit at Sharif's residence.

"The unit was set up under the supervision of Sharif's personal physician Dr Adnan Khan and the doctors will be present in the ICU round the clock," she added.

While being shifted to his residence from the hospital, Sharif was accompanied by his mother, daughter Maryam Nawaz and other family members.

On October 29, Sharif was granted bail by the Islamabad High Court on medical grounds in connection with Al Azizia and Chaudhry Sugar Mills corruption cases.

The ailing Pakistani leader was serving a seven-year imprisonment in the Al-Azizia case in Kot Lakhpat jail in Lahore. Besides this, he was remanded to the NAB custody in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case.