RAWALPINDI: Following a clash between two groups of prisoners at the Central Jail Adiala and the recovery of cash and some banned items, 11 jail officials, including two assistant superintendents, were suspended and directed to report to the office of the inspector general (IG) prisons.

In addition to the suspension of the 11 officials, who had also been getting repeated posting to the jail for a long time, 23 prisoners, including convicted and under-trial, were shifted to different jails in Punjab. The authorities said these inmates were causing administrative problems for the jail authorities.

The move came about after there was a clash between two inmates. One of them, a British national, wired his pictures with torture marks to his father in the UK. Later, the pictures reached the Punjab Home Department.

Later, the inspector general of prisons constituted a three-member team, comprising deputy inspector general prisons Rawalpindi region Malik Shaukat Feroze, DIG prisons Faisalabad, Saeedullah Gondal and DIG Mohammad Kamran to carry out a search of the Adiala jail.

The three-member team along with more than 200 warders conducted a search operation in the jail and recovered Rs80,000 cash, mobile phone charges, glasses and other items which the inmates were not allowed to keep with them.

The team also investigated the inmates regarding their links with jail officials and later sent recommendations to the IG prisons and the Home Department to initiate departmental action against them. These officials had repeatedly been posted to the jail and had links with some of the inmates.

On the recommendations of the three-member team, IG Prisons Shahid Saleem Baig suspended the 11 officials and directed them to report to the IG office in Lahore.

In addition, 23 influential prisoners housed in the jail were transferred to Mianwali, Faisalabad, Bhakkar and Attock jails.

Among the 23 prisoners, some were under trial, one was on death row, another facing life imprisonment and one was on extradition.

When contacted, IG Prisons Shahid Saleem Baig said the two groups of inmates involved in the clash in the jail were shifted to other jails while 11 officials were suspended and served with show-cause notices.

Mr Baig said the three-member team carried out a search operation in the jail for two days and recommended the transfer of the jail officials after finding their links with some inmates.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2021