Pakistani on deathbed thanks army chief for facilitating his family's visit to UK

LONDON: The family of bed-ridden Pakistani citizen in the United Kingdom arrived in Birmingham to meet him after they were granted visa by the British High Commission Islamabad after intervention from Pakistani authorities, ARY News reported.

Thirty eight-year-old Nasarullah Khan, who is suffering with a terminal heart condition, had requested British authorities to grant visas to his family so he could meet them one last time.

Later, after his family arrived, he thanked Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa for making the visit possible. “My family was contacted by the office of the Army Chief. I thank him for taking concern about my problem.”

Khan, a father of two, with weeks left to live was asked to pay more than £30,000 for his treatment. He was refused a lifesaving transplant just before Christmas because of his immigration status.

According to Birmingham Live, Khan is currently in a fragile condition at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham.

Khan entered the UK as a visitor with ‘entry clearance’ that expired in 2011 but he chose to remain in the country.

“Its been nine years since I last saw my 11-year-old son and my nine-year-old son,” he said.

Khan is being granted palliative care but has been told he will have to foot the bill, which is thought to run into tens of thousands of pounds, even though it is likely to be issued after his death.

A fundraising appeal and an online petition, currently bearing 1,400 signatures had been launched to enable his wife and two young sons to visit him before he dies.