NEW DELHI – “Indian spy” Sarabjit Singh, the death row convict who was undergoing treatment in a Lahore hospital, passed away late Wednesday night, according to TV reports.
Sarabjit Singh, 49, suffered critical head injuries in an unprovoked and sudden assault by four to five prisoners on April 26 in Pakistan’s Kot Lakhpat Jail. He had been on ventilator life support since then.
Sarabjit has remained in deep coma since Friday’s near-fatal attack in jail and despite detecting serious injuries, doctors said his body was in no condition to withstand surgery. All through Tuesday, Sarabjit’s wife and daughter weren’t given any clear picture of the 49-year-old’s status, late in the evening TOI managed to reach some doctors privy to the treatment who confirmed he was “brain-dead” while being on ventilator support.
“Sarabjit’s survival needs nothing less than a miracle. His brain is dead. He was brought to the hospital in a state of deep coma. Since day one, his health has not shown any sign of improvement at any stage. In such cases, patients survives till the ventilator runs,” a senior doctor told TOI on condition of anonymity. Singh was hit on the head a number of times which damaged his brain, the doctor said.
Sarabjit was attacked with bricks and iron rods by two fellow inmates – Amir Tanba and Mudasir – in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail on Friday afternoon when he was brought outside his cell for a routine break.
Meanwhile, the Punjab government has issued show cause notices to seven jail officials, including jail Superintendent Mohsin Rafiq, for failing to protect Sarabjit.
Dalbir said that she has appealed to the Indian government to send a team of doctors to examine Sarabjit as she was not satisfied with the treatment given to him. “Even if Pakistani doctors declare my brother brain dead, I wouldn’t let them remove him from ventilators unless a team of doctors from India examines him,” said Kaur.
Sarabjit had been languishing in Pakistan jail since 1990, when he was caught spying for India inside Pakistan.
