Fact-check: Image of the interior minister in hospital is real

An image of Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has been shared repeatedly in posts, and in WhatsApp groups, showing him wearing an oxygen mask while lying in a hospital bed. Several social media posts claim the image is fake.

The picture is real and was taken recently.

Claim

On November 11, the Twitter account Fact Checker MOIB, run by the ministry of information and broadcasting, tweeted a picture of Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, which showed him in a hospital, and labelled it “Fake News”.

The caption read: “Disseminating #FakeNews is not only unethical and illegal but it is also a disservice to the nation.”

While some tweets alleged that nothing has happened to the minister and it was “all a drama”.

Fact

The image is authentic. It was taken after the minister was admitted to a hospital in Rawalpindi, Punjab.

Rana Ahmad Sheheryar, the interior minister’s son in law, confirmed to Geo Fact Check over the phone that the minister was admitted to the hospital on November 9, and the picture being shared on social media was snapped the same day.

“This is a new picture, which was taken after a 10-minute procedure at the hospital,” said Sheheryar. “He will return home today or tomorrow.”

The Pakistan Muslim League-N’s (PML-N) official Twitter handle has also released a voice note from Sanaullah to confirm that he has undergone a minor procedure.

“People who panicked after seeing my picture from the operation theatre,” Sanaullah has been heard saying, “I would like to tell them that 20 years back, around 2004, I had to undergo a heart surgery. That is why it is important to have a small procedure and general check up every few years.”

He further adds he is currently at the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology and National Institute of Heart Diseases in Rawalpindi.

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