LAHORE: Rights activist Asma Jahangir has said executing a paraplegic, Abdul Basit, will be an inhuman act.

In a statement, she said 43-year-old Basit was likely to be executed in Faisalabad soon. He is paralysed down the waist and is on a wheelchair. His mother Parveen said she saw scars from ropes on Basit’s wrists when she met him recently.

Asma strongly condemned this act of officials and said civilised societies should treat a patient like a patient should be treated. “Basit is paralysed and officials should stop torturing him inside the jail. The decision to execute him should also be suspended, she demanded.

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2015

Opinion

Editorial

Hasty transition
Updated 05 May, 2024

Hasty transition

Ostensibly, the aim is to exert greater control over social media and to gain more power to crack down on activists, dissidents and journalists.
One small step…
05 May, 2024

One small step…

THERE is some good news for the nation from the heavens above. On Friday, Pakistan managed to dispatch a lunar...
Not out of the woods
05 May, 2024

Not out of the woods

PAKISTAN’S economic vitals might be showing some signs of improvement, but the country is not yet out of danger....
Rigging claims
Updated 04 May, 2024

Rigging claims

The PTI’s allegations are not new; most elections in Pakistan have been controversial, and it is almost a given that results will be challenged by the losing side.
Gaza’s wasteland
04 May, 2024

Gaza’s wasteland

SINCE the start of hostilities on Oct 7, Israel has put in ceaseless efforts to depopulate Gaza, and make the Strip...
Housing scams
04 May, 2024

Housing scams

THE story of illegal housing schemes in Punjab is the story of greed, corruption and plunder. Major players in these...