Marriyum Aurangzeb denies renaming of Lahore’s Jinnah Institute of Cardiology after CM Maryam

LAHORE: Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb has denied any reports of renaming the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology (JIC) Lahore after Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, following the backlash on social media.

“The name ‘Jinnah Institute of Cardiology Lahore’ remains ‘Jinnah Institute of Cardiology Lahore’ and no changes are under consideration,” Aurangzeb wrote in a post on X.

She said that in the Punjab government’s annual development programme for the fiscal year 2025-26, funding has been allocated under the name Jinnah Institute of Cardiology.

“As part of the efforts to provide world-class treatment for cardiac and other diseases, 14 new hospitals will be established in the Nawaz Sharif Medical District. The master plan for this project is near completion,” Aurangzeb said, and asked journalists to verify the facts before publishing any news.

Earlier on Monday, Punjab Health Minister Khwaja Salman Rafique told a private news channel that the Jinnah Institute of Cardiology Lahore has been renamed as ‘Maryam Nawaz Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases’.

He said that the Maryam Nawaz Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases had been made autonomous and would not be under the administrative control of Jinnah Hospital.

Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said on Saturday in the National Assembly that she has decided to set up an extension of the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) as both the population and heart diseases had increased in the province.

“The Maryam Nawaz Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases will be an extension of the PIC. It is in the final stage of completion,” she said, and also showed the pictures of the project site in the assembly.