LARKANA: The fifth judicial magistrate, Larkana, Salaman Jawed, on Saturday remanded the suspended assistant director of Darul Aman, Mukhtiar Khatoon Abbasi, four policemen and a watchman in judicial custody for three days in a case pertaining to the escape of three inmates on July 1.

The three women, Nusrat Buledi, 24, (Garhi Khairo), Nooran Chandio, 22, (Warah) and Muskan Shaikh, 32, (Khairpur) escaped from the Darul Aman by cutting the iron grille of the window of an upper storey.

The Waleed police produced Ms Abbasi, the policemen, Mohammed Mithal, Mohammed Azam, Raja Khan and Abdul Wahab, and the watchman, Atta Mohammed Brohi, before the magistrate and sought 14-day police remand. However, the magistrate rejected the police request and remanded them in judicial custody for three days.

Ms Abbasi, who heads the Larkana Darul Aman, was sent to the city’s Special Prison for Women. The others suspects were sent to the central prison.

A panel of lawyers, including Inayat Morio, Niaz Mirani, Nizamuddain Abro and Feroz Korai, appearing for the defendants, contested the charges framed by the police in the FIR.

They sought release of their clients on bail.

The investigation officer of the case, SI Naseer Manghi, contended that release of the suspects on bail would spoil the investigation.

Disagreeing with the IO’s contention, the magistrate granted bail to all six suspects in a sum of Rs50,000 each.

Later, speaking to the media, Ms Abbasi claimed she was at her home when the incident took place. She said she had no information about mobile phones having been provided to the three women to help them escape from Darul Aman.

Watchman Atta Mohammed Brohi said he was not on duty on the day the women escaped .

The policemen nominated in the FIR said they were on duty outside the Darul Aman building and remained completely unaware of what had happened inside.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2014